THE RED FOX

WHERE IT LIVES
- found in all parts of Canada.
- lives in a burrow that was dug by another animal.
- may dig a tunnel of its own in loose soil
- dens may also be under buildings
- can have more than one entrance
- grass and leaves line the den
- might have more than one den for a family

FAMILY
- male is a dog, female is a vixen, young are pups
- belong to the same family as the dog, gray wolf and coyote

APPEARANCE
- small slender mammal
- pointy nose and pointy ears.
- body length is 100 to 112 cm. including tail
- white throat and underbody.
- legs have black paws with white "socks"
- long bushy tail, white at the tip.
- beautiful fur is reddish or sandy in colour
- fur can also be brownish, black or silvery

HUNTING FOR FOOD
- hunts for rabbits, hares, lemmings, squirrels and mice.
- also eats birds, eggs, insects and snakes.
- buries food
- very good sense of hearing
- picks up sounds of small animals in the grass, underground
or under the snow (fox in the snow)
- keen sense of smell , can locate a nest of eggs
- hunts from dusk to dawn
- also raids chicken coops on farms.

ENEMIES AND PROTECTION
- wolves, lynxes, fishers, bobcats, cougars and coyotes hunt it
- trapped for its beautiful fur
- It runs along logs, doubles back or wades in water so
hunters cannot follow its scent.
- warns others with a sharp bark
- foxes living near people are hit by cars
- average life span is three to five years in the wild
- some may live over ten years

young foxes

THE YOUNG
- female (vixen) has four or five pups in the spring.
- up to ten pups could be in a litter
- male brings food to the vixen so she can stay with the pups.
- in a month pups can eat meat
- family stays together till fall
- by winter the young are on their own
- many foxes die before they are a year old

OTHER FACTS
- a group is called a "skulk"
- foxes can carry a disease called "rabies"
( a bite spreads the disease )
- stories are written about the fox's cleverness and trickery.