Granddad’s Camera
Red fox, as it appears in the game

No.013 · Mammals · Common

Red fox

Vulpes vulpes

Britain's wild dog: a russet coat, white-tipped brush and sharp amber eyes. Shy in the countryside, bolder in town, where it patrols gardens and railway banks after dark.

When to look

All year, mostly at dawn, dusk and night.

Time of day

Best time
Night, all year; dawn and dusk are best. Cubs play above ground at dusk in May–July.
Where in the game
Millbrook (garden, urban, park, farmland, churchyard and canal), the New Forest (ancient woodland, heath, lawn and mire) and the Norfolk Broads (grazing marsh, fen, dunes, carr and reedbed)
Size
Head and body about 62–72 cm, tail about 40 cm
Weight
5–7 kg; males heavier
Lifespan
Usually 1–3 years in the wild; the oldest confirmed wild fox was 12
Population
About 357,000 in Britain (Mammal Society, 2018; PTES)
Status
Least Concern in Britain (Mammal Society Red List 2020); Near Threatened in Scotland

Diet

Omnivore: rodents, rabbits, earthworms, insects, birds, fruit and scraps; caches spare food.

Habitat

Farmland, woods, dunes, marshes and towns; urban foxes den under sheds and in railway banks.

Breeding

Cubs (usually 4–5) are born from March to May in an earth, with births peaking in mid-March; they emerge at 4–5 weeks and become independent by autumn.

Field signs

  • Twisted, tapering droppings, often on a stone or tussock, with a strong musky smell
  • Diamond-shaped, four-toed tracks in a straight line, with claw marks
  • Piercing screams in December–February, from vixens calling for mates

Did you know?

  • A vixen's scream in midwinter is the mating call; it is often mistaken for someone in distress.
  • A Czech study (2011) found foxes tend to pounce on mice towards the north-east, which the researchers linked to the Earth's magnetic field.
  • The fox has vertical, cat-like pupils, unusual in dogs, that help it see well in dim light.

Moments worth waiting for

  • Cubs at play May to July, dusk and dawn
    Three cubs tumble out of the earth and pounce on each other's tails.
  • Mousing leap October to March, dawn and dusk
    A fox stands stock-still, ears swivelling, then springs high and pounces headfirst into the grass.

Photo tip

Watch a den or a garden from a car or hide at dusk with a long lens, in the low warm light. Use a high ISO rather than a flash, which frightens foxes.

Be a good naturalist

Do not feed foxes to bring them close; hand-fed foxes lose caution and can be harmed. Never approach an occupied den; keep to 50 m or more.

The law

No close season, but protected from cruelty under the Wild Mammals (Protection) Act 1996; hunting with dogs is illegal under the Hunting Act 2004 (England and Wales) and the Hunting with Dogs (Scotland) Act 2023.

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