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Writer's pictureCrone

Creatures of the night



The crow is not in focus and it is day time really, but isn't this just right for that heading?? I love this. The camera was struggling to focus on moving creatures on a cloudy afternoon.



These remind me of the illustrations for Russian folktales. Took me ages to find an example... head here.


Anyway, I wasn't thinking of the crows when I titled this, I was thinking of the urban fox - about whom I have read a vast amount, thanks to David McDonald's book about foxes. It was good. Better than the heavyweight badger book.


Urban foxes seldom reach over two years of age and many have healed fractures. Roads kill them, basically. The manage their societies and reproduction differently in towns - with more females having litters. They'll visit maybe 24 gardens regularly. Each fox, that is.


This fox did not like the trail camera and did not eat.



Still, I am glad a fox still visits. There were no masses of running rats. But I think I see the eye of one in the background. I am also glad the fox looks healthy. Clare is treating one for mange at the moment, while Leanne's one-eyed vixen has returned - and she'd been gone a few years. Leanne's camera is in a field, so her foxes could reach five or even older.


In the fox book, one blind fox managed to live in Oxford for well over a year. He was finally run over. There have been quite a few foxes on the side of the road on my commute to work recently. They may have been more hungry in the cold spell, perhaps.


This fox can't be too hungry as he seldom takes all the food I leave out. Maybe he's filled up on rats.

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maplekey4
Feb 18

Oh yes, I see what you mean about your photos and the Russian illustrations. Cool.

Very interesting about the urban fox information. I read at the link about how much foxes like earthworms! I didn't know that. And mange -- that has been quite a problem for wild foxes on PEI for the last several years. Yes the dangers of the roads. I read recently that many racoons (for example) are killed on roads.

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