North American Foxes

These small canids are related to dogs, wolves, coyotes and jackals.

Sep 30, 2007

Several fox species exist in North America. These "cat-like" predators have adapted well to urban settings but are still being destroyed as pests and for their fur.

Fox Lineage

Foxes are related to dogs, wolves, coyotes, and jackals. All belong to the family Canidae and order Carnivora, meaning simply they are all meat-eating, dog-like mammals. Foxes are the smallest and their movements are more cat-like. Depending on sources referred to, five or six species of foxes make their home on the continent of North America: Red Fox, Gray Fox, Arctic Fox, Swift Fox, Kit Fox, and Island Fox. The evolutionary lineage of foxes dates back before 40 million years ago.

Fox Facts

Fur of the fox is thick and comes in a range of colors. Arctic foxes are pure white in the winter while red foxes are often the bright rust orange color. Interestingly, red foxes do not always have this tell-tale shade, they can be silver or dark shades. Foxes prefer meat but they also eat native fruits, berries, and nuts when available. Foxes are active mostly at dawn and dusk and prefer solo hunting. The agile gray fox can even climb trees!

Coyotes Against Foxes

Foxes and coyotes often share the same territory. However, they do so not as mutual friends but as competitive species. They sustain themselves on the same types of prey such as mice, voles, rabbits, insects, and carrion. Coyotes often kill foxes in battles over food and their population numbers inversely relate to one another. Easily said, areas where greater numbers of coyotes are present generally means fewer foxes are present, and vice-versa.

Foxes as Threats & Threats to Foxes

Foxes adapt well to human activity. They thrive around urban areas just as much as they do in wild places. This also adds to the threat against them. Everyone can picture the familiar red fox sneaking into the hen house to kill chickens and eat eggs. Foxes can pose a threat to young livestock (usually already dead), poultry, waterfowl, and small pets. Because of this, foxes have long been revered as a nuisance. Foxes are shot on sight, poisoned, and trapped as a deterrent. Sport hunting is nearly always a sure death sentence to foxes, although at times a fox may be chased to exhaustion for the thrill of it and not actually killed in the end. Trapping foxes for their furs and fur farms continue to pose a grave threat to them. Automobiles present clear dangers, as well. Whereas other wild animals can transmit rabies to foxes, increasingly closer contact with pet dogs increases the chances of foxes acquiring distemper.

Endangered Foxes

The U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service lists the following fox subspecies as endangered:

All but the Northern Swift Fox are found in California. The Northern Swift Fox is listed in Canada. The first four subspecies were added to the list in 2004. Even Ethiopia has an endangered fox, the Simien Fox.

Pouncing the Day Away

It’s a cool, crisp winter’s day. The snow is glistening a beautiful blue hue as the trees shade the afternoon sun. In the midst of a field covered sparsely with frozen vegetation, a fluffy red fox pounces continuously at its prey. The fox leaves the area unsuccessful but tries again a short distance away. Intent in the hunt, only once in a while does the fox take a moment to look around and rest. Watching a fox is as fun as watching a kitten play with a catnip-filled toy; don’t pass up the opportunity to watch a one.

The copyright of the article North American Foxes in Mammals is owned by Lisa A. Bessasparis. Permission to republish North American Foxes in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.