Gray Fox - Urocyon cinereoargenteus
Sunday, August 5th, 2007Range: They use a series of dens for shelter and raising young. Typical den sites include rock formations, hollow logs or trees, burrows and brush piles. Gray foxes line dens with grass, leaves or shredded bark.
Anatomy: A gray fox adult is 35 to 44 inches in length and weighing from 5 to 14 pounds. The sides of its neck, backs of its ears, and underside of its tail are rusty yellow. A reddish-orange band separates the whitish throat and belly from the upper sides and back, which are a salt and pepper gray. A black mane of long, coarse hairs extends along the top of the tail from its base to its tip, which is also black.
Behavior: Gray fox are most active at night. They are the only member of the canine family (foxes, coyotes, wolves) that can climb trees. Gray foxes have been found in squirrel nests and abandoned hawk nests up to 60 feet above the ground. This habit is useful for escaping enemies, sunbathing and eating fruits or other foods found in trees. Gray foxes are secretive and shy, but fight fiercely when necessary. They can run 26 miles per hour for short distances. Rabbits and rodents make up the bulk of their diet. A study in Missouri showed the following food groups and their percentages by volume: rabbits (47.1); mice and rats (20.7); other wild mammals (3.6); livestock (0.8); poultry (9.7); wild birds (6.6); carrion (0.8); insects (1.2); plants (8.8) and miscellaneous (0.7). Corn, berries and fruits like persimmons can be important foods.
Breeding: Gray fox breed from January to mid-May and have a gestation period of 53 days. One to ten but usually three to five pups are born between March and mid-May. Pups are born with their eyes closed and have a thin layer of blackish hair. Their eyes open at 9 to 12 days of age. They leave the den for the first time to accompany their parents on hunting trips at about 3 months of age. The family group breaks up in late summer or early fall. The young continue to grow until they’re about 18 months old, but they are able to breed before they are a year old.