We here at CVR have had quite a few interactions with the local red fox that call the area home. First, two pairs of foxes had babies right outside of our Lutsen offices back in 2019. The curious group of pups entertained staff and visitors alike with their adorable antics the entire summer. We’ve also spotted red foxes around homes, including the time our maintenance man, Marc, spotted this adorable red fox snoozing away on the steps of Blue House in Lutsen. However, you don’t have to be in Lutsen to see them! The red fox population along the North Shore is alive and well and they can be seen all over!
About the Red Fox
You will find the red fox living in most of Canada and the United States. They are quite rare in the western U.S. but, they are abundant throughout Minnesota. Typically, red foxes are a reddish color with white underparts and a white-tipped tail. They have slender legs and feet that are often black. The red fox weighs between 8 and 15 pounds and is about 15-16 inches in height with a length of approximately 3ft. The red fox runs 30 mph and can leap 15 feet in a single bound–farther than a kangaroo. It is one of the few predators that store food items for future use.
Habitat
Red foxes live throughout Minnesota in many types of habitat, ranging from mature forest to open fields. They range over about two square miles, depending on how far they need to travel to find food. Red foxes compete for space with coyotes, which will kill foxes. During the Mating season, they will live in dens with their kits until they have matured enough to provide for themselves.
Reproduction
In winter, foxes meet to mate. The vixen (female) typically gives birth to a litter of 2 to 12 pups. At birth, red foxes are actually brown or gray. A new red coat usually grows in by the end of the first month, but some red foxes are golden, reddish-brown, silver, or even black. Both parents care for their young through the summer before they are able to strike out on their own in the fall. If the mother dies before the kits are independent, the father takes over as their provider. In captivity, their longevity can be as long as 15 years, though in the wild they typically do not survive past 5 years of age.
Food
Red foxes tend to be solitary animals, and always hunt alone. The fox may be active day and night but appears to hunt most during twilight and evening. Red foxes are opportunistic although, they usually eat small mammals such as rodents, rabbits, and squirrels. They also feed on carrion, snakes, crayfish, salamanders, berries, nuts, and seeds. Red foxes have excellent hearing. They can hear low-frequency sounds and rodents digging underground.
Spotting One
Red foxes have black feet and black-tipped ears that are large and pointy. One of the most noticeable characteristics of the red fox is the fluffy white-tipped tail. Outside of mating season foxes generally roam out in the open. Red foxes have adapted well to suburban and rural communities and have started to live in parks and woodland edges.