For the first 35 years of my life I MIGHT have seen an actual wild fox - I don’t know, maybe three times. Maybe. I remember stumbling across one with my ex wife once about ten or twelve years ago and being legitimately amazed.
Something’s happened because now they are absolutely goddamn everywhere. I see two or three a week, at least. They’re running around in broad daylight. I see foxes when walking the dog, when walking to the mailbox, along the side of the road when I’m driving. This literally started happening six months ago, and it’s not just my neighborhood. I just saw one cheerily strolling through the parking lot outside my office.
A lot of animals have definitely been on the upswing the last few decades in southern Ontario. Coyotes are much more common than they used to be, and birds of prey have gone from being “oh, cool, a hawk” to being as remarkable as sparrows and geese. I’ve even seen a few eagles in the last few years. But holy shit, the foxes. The hell is gong on?
Mind you, I don’t have any problem with them. Foxes kill rats, mice, squirrels, and other pests. Foxes around mean fewer shit animals I’d have to worry about myself. I’m just flabbergasted as to where they all came from.
Anyone else notice this? Or just a huge surge in wildlife hanging around in general?
Yes and no. There were oodles of deer around a few years ago, but it’s been awhile since I saw one. On the other hand, I have seen more skunks and raccoons. Not seen a fox in the wild since hiking a few years ago.
We had a family of foxes around here a year or two ago. The vixen was always playing with the kits. They had no fear of humans. One side effect was that we all found carcasses of squirrels and chipmunks at our doors. That family disappeared and we haven’t seen much since. I was followed around by a fox on a nearby golf course. I think golfers were feeding it.
I saw a documentary recently (I think on Netflix) about how foxes had adapted well to suburban neighborhoods. People often feed them.
ETA: I am in Northern New Jersey. Deer are like rats around here.
I’m actually surprised that I haven’t seen more coyotes or foxes in my neighborhood. I assume the rampaging herds of whitetails have trampled them.
In general though, my gut feeling is that urban spaces have done a better job of managing the stray dog & cat populations in the last twenty five years. Foxes and coyotes are expanding to occupy those economic niches. Coyotes especially are perfectly happy city dwellers. Meanwhile, my London cousin says they’re neck deep in foxes.
IIRC my ecology/biology correctly, predator/prey numbers often fluctuate wildly – if by random chance there are fewer foxes one year, the rabbit population might absolutely explode, and then the next year with all the rabbits to eat, the fox population explodes, followed by the rabbit population crashing since so many are eaten, and then the foxes run out of prey so they crash too. And the cycle continues.
This. Also, red foxes seem to be unfazed by human presence, although I’m not sure this is universal, or only a rural/urban situation. In my rural area, red foxes are known to be oblivious or at least tolerant to humans. I can relate personal stories from the 1950’s that support that.
Deer, deer, and more! We have a healthy population of foxes also. It’s an absolute gluttony of coyotes. Way too many for this place to accommodate. They are plunderers. Stealing feed, chickens and small pets. I agree that they probably fluctuate from year to year.
animals like foxes, coyotes, deer, etc. thrive around developed areas. we (accidentally or otherwise) provide them plenty of food, prevent them from being hunted, and still give them plenty of cover to move around at night. I live 5 minutes north of Detroit, and less than a mile north of me I regularly see deer standing around in the middle of the road like idiots.
I live in the Pacific North-Wet, in a still-mostly-rural area, but with “developments” popping up within a few miles, every two-to-four years. Every time a new one occurs, most of the wildlife in that “neighborhood” is pushed out, and they push out the nearby wildlife, which in turn pushes out… IOW, there’s a ripple effect, which I see in my yard from time to time.
So, to the OP: any block(s) of new houses in the area? Since you say you’ve seen 'em across a goodly area, it would have to be a major “development” or a batch of moderate sized ones.
Since your location is Southern but along Lake Ontario not Superior that leaves the possibility that their range has expanded closer to you. Wolves, as the dominant predator in North America, have massive effects on their ecosystems. When reintroduced in Yellowstone they even produced changes in the paths of rivers. One of the other effects seen was larger fox populations.
There were a couple of years recently where I saw a lot of codes (our dog, who had begun to lose interest in squirrels, had the interest come back with a vengeance when she saw a fox about her size carrying a squirrel in its jaws). I haven’t seen one in a while, although some folks inn the hood have.
We never had foxes nor deer in my neck of the woods until this year :eek:
Coyotes, oh yes. We’ve got protected wetlands surrounding the neighborhood, a nearby golf course, and a large park. The coyotes use my street as a shortcut to get to the park. I used to see them every so often when I worked at the buttcrack of dawn.
Rabbits. Oh lord, there’s been a population explosion here the last couple of years. As somebody said upthread, where there’s prey, there are predators.
As for the deer…??? We have deer, but mostly in the state forest area on the other side of town. Until I saw a couple of them the other day cutting through somebody’s side yard near our local supermarket, I honestly thought they avoided this semi-urban area :shrug: