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The Bushy Tails —  Red & Gray Foxes

Spring 2003 Newsletter

Both red and gray foxes can be found in northwest Illinois, although the red fox is much more common. Foxes are members of the dog family, Canidae. Like dogs, foxes have four toes and a dewclaw on their front feet and four toes on their back feet.

Unlike most dogs, foxes have a bushy tail that extends straight back when they are running. They also feature large pointed ears and a long, sharp snout. Red foxes are the most common fox of Canada and North American. Its body is 22 to 25 inches long plus a 14- to 16-inch bushy tail.

The red fox’s thick coat is reddish gold, with darker legs and feet and a white tip on the tail. The gray fox is about four inches larger and has silver gray and black coloring. It is more abundant in southern Illinois. Other foxes found in North America include the smaller kit fox of the southwest and the arctic fox of the far north.

The male fox is called a dog and the female a vixen. After mating, foxes settle into underground dens or among rocks, or in hollow logs. A female fox gives birth to four to nine pups (or cubs). Foxes live in family groups while the young are growing up. Later, they live alone or in pairs.

Foxes have keen hearing and an excellent sense of smell. They hunt mostly at night, feeding on mice and other rodents, bird, frogs, and rabbits. Foxes have been hunted and trapped for their luxurious fur and chased on Fox Hunts, but they have survived and seem to be here to stay.