Meet Your Neighbors

Red Fox: crafting its niche

As the human population grows and the Chicago area’s landscape continues to transform, the red fox (Vulpes vulpes) is one species that has learned to adapt and survive. The phrase “sly as a fox” came from the accurate perception of the fox as crafty and intelligent, and it’s a trait that has paid off for the species. The fox’s ability to withstand habitat loss, predation, and disease with minimal population decline is impressive.

Although its bushy red tail gives the illusion of size, the red fox, the largest of all true foxes, is actually about the size of a housecat. Red foxes are significantly smaller than their canid relatives and frequent neighbors, the coyotes. They can vary in color from yellowish-red to silver, but most often have a deep reddish coat, white belly, black lower legs, and white or black tip of the tail. Mature foxes have yellow eyes and dark brown or black noses.

It should be no surprise that the red fox adapts well to a changing environment — it is the most widely distributed carnivore in the world. Red foxes are found throughout most of North America, Europe, Asia, and northern Africa. They were introduced to Australia, where they’re considered a problem invasive species. Their habitats include forest, prairie, desert, mountains, farmland, and urban areas, from sea level to high elevations. Their widespread population is in no small part due to their adaptability as omnivores, eating everything from small rodents to plants to insects.

But some express concern for the red fox’s long-term welfare. “Having grown up in DuPage County, I’m certain the red fox used to be more common,” says Dan Thompson, ecologist for the Forest Preserve District of DuPage County. “But with human development and changes to the landscape, I’m not seeing them nearly as often in the forest preserves.” In DuPage County, for example, 75 percent of farmland has vanished over the last three decades, leaving many animals with fewer places to go. The red fox, however, has readily moved to urban and suburban areas, denning under buildings and foraging along roadsides and railroad tracks.

A 1998 study by the Forest Preserve District of DuPage County’s Willowbrook Wildlife Center found that coyotes and red foxes seldom occupy the same territory. This may be due to the fact that coyotes often kill and drive out foxes from their territory because they compete for the same resources. The two also prefer different travel corridors, foxes often taking to the railways while coyotes more often opt for waterways.

As coyotes move into what traditionally have been red fox habitats, the foxes are taking up suburban living. Because of their smaller size and solitary nature, they are capable of surviving in areas that can’t sustain large numbers of coyotes. As a result, some people are getting their first sightings of wild red foxes in their neighborhoods.

At Willowbrook Wildlife Center, most people calling about neighborhood fox sightings are concerned about their own safety or the safety of children and pets. In fact, foxes are quite fearful of people and will avoid interaction if at all possible. Humans are their most lethal predator — 80 percent of young foxes die before adulthood, mostly from cars and hunters. They are not considered to be a significant source of disease.

If a fox has moved into your yard and you have questions, call the Willowbrook Wildlife Center at (630) 942-6200 for advice. There is little need for concern, though. “They’ve been living amongst us for so long, and how many have been peaceful encounters?” asks Thompson. “Nearly all of them.”

Indeed, seeing a red fox, especially in its natural habitat, is a great reason to get excited.

— Jennifer Hardy

Related Articles:

Tree Fox, CW Winter 2004

A New Day for Old Predators?, CW Fall 2008