Vicki Fox > Guests > PEI Foxes > 1998 Journal 2Q

PEI Foxes - 1998 Journal : April to June

Apr 23

Investigations found the following:

Den under the old cottage by the shore. No new digging, no signs of recent activity in the den. Fox scat nearby, but it looks old.

Den at the top of the hill in the spruce plantation. No new digging, no signs of recent activity. Two of the entrances were enlarged last year on the exterior. Large enough for wolf entrance. However, they narrow to fox size about 12" in.

Old log den. No new digging, no sign of any activity - except! The surrounding area is riddled, and I mean riddled, with droppings that look exactly like Kix cereal. (Will never eat that again.) Tan in color and perfectly round, the size of a pea. Tom and I assume they are rabbit droppings. In one place they were piled in a pyramid. Looked like a miniature cannon ball display.

Old natal den on the loop road. Large coyote scat about three yards away which is nothing but white fur. Den openings full of dead leaves.

The fallen-down shed on our neighbors property that housed a natal den has been cleared. The old earth by another shed hasn't been used in the four years I've been checking and has also been cleared.

Some observations. We can't get over how many mice there are this year. There are mice mounds and mouse trails and holes EVERYWHERE! Branches that have fallen are completely nude of bark. Tom says he has never seen so much evidence of mice. Two even died in our basement (thank heaven they didn't get any farther in the house). However, we have mouse bait and traps every three feet all through the house, such is my fear of them. With such a mouse population, it makes me wonder if there are no foxes to eat them.

The road crossing the brook is half washed out, and so slippery my footing was more like skating. Found some interesting coyote tracks. Stride about 18" and straddle only about 4". However, in following the tracks, you can see a definite pounce . . . so it caught something. Lots of racoon tracks in the mud.

While all the foregoing sounds dire, I am convinced my children won't abandon me and will bring their offspring to play as in previous years. Maybe it's me they're hiding the den from. I left some milk bone at the sitting rock, and some chicken pieces at the top of the hill. I'll do that every day we are here so they will know their playmate is still around.

Apr 25

Walked to the top of the hill behind the house this morning. Saw lots of old fox scat on the way up and two "new" specimens (new = no older than 2 weeks). Opposite the swale between the first and second rise were two perfect fox prints in the soft clay. Whether they were a month old or left from last fall, I don't know. They didn't look yesterday-recent. The swale is where many of their previous year's caches were. I continued up the lane thru the spruce trees and saw scat that could be just days old - but again, I'm not sure. The food I had left at the top of the hill was gone. Whether it was the rain and blowing winds yesterday, coyotes, birds, or foxes, I don't know. However, amongst all the old scat around the site, there was some that looked fairly fresh; it had lots of seed pips in it. Now, even tho we took the car up two days ago, I did walk from the sitting rock to the top of the hill and didn't see it then. I continued up to the sitting rock and again the food was gone. Even the food I had placed between the rocks so wind wouldn't blow it. However it would be no trick for birds to find the bread bits. I don't think they would like the dog biscuits or the chicken. Old scat is thick around the rock. It is obviously a marking post. Between the sitting rock and the end of the reopened lane is our pile of cut Island stone. It had served as basement walls before we lifted the house and had a new foundation poured. On one of these stones was new (new = no older than 2 weeks) scat that was mostly red berries. I walked back home down the reopened lane and saw no traces at all.

Some assumptions I've made. (1) I always wondered if the lane had become a territory boundry. From the scat around the sitting rock I think that may be so. (2) There were *no* signs of coyote scat at all. So at least they haven't encroached on any more fox territory. (3) Whelping time here probably started two weeks ago which could account for the scarcity of visible activity. (4) Since two 'ancestral dens' on our neighbors and our property line were demolished, new sites probably had to be found and they forgot to leave a forwarding address with me.

Now - how's that for positive thinking!

Apr 26

Food at all feeding sites gone this morning when I walked up the hill. Left a broken up dog biscuit at each place. Checked sites tonight and food gone again. Left tiny pieces of chicken, bread, and milk bone. Don't know what's eating the food; crows, coyotes, raccoons, or neighbor's cat. My "scat chart" must be wrong as tiny twists of white fur scat left at sitting rock is not on my chart. Don't dare hope it's new.

Apr 27

Scott emailed me the following advice

>>To determine what type of animal is takign the bait. Try covering something meaty with some long grass near where you normally leave it. Birds won't get it because they can't see it. If you are near some dry dirt, place the covered bait on it and smooth out the dirt so that an animal will leave tracks. If the food is gone, check to see what the tracks belong to. <<

The ground is still sort of frozen, but Tom got enough fresh clay to put on three sides of the sitting rock. I put the tid bits on top of the rock as usual. He then put some fresh clay at the top of the hill where there is a low spot and he wanted a little fill there anyway. I put a cut up hot dog (figured that was the most pungent smelling thing we had) on the clay and covered it with long grass. I panicked at picking the grass fearing a mouse might pop out - but all was well and no wee beastie was seen. Went to the shack by the shore and a little fresh clay had been dug by paws of some kind. It was by the entrance to the den underneath. Not alot of clay - probably no more than a cup full - but it was sprayed out over the other. Three new fox prints in that dirt. Looks like they are making that area ready to move the newborn to. They sure move around alot. I'm glad to be inside - it's like The Birds outside. I counted 19 crows (or black birds of some kind - they look a little smaller than crows) in all the trees around our back yard. I checked and didn't see Hitchcock anywhere so feared this might be the real thing and dashed into the house. Spoooooooooky.

Apr 28

I talked to Pia McGill (of Little Sands on the eastern part of Prince Edward Island) last night and she informs me she came face to face with a pregnant vixen a couple of days ago. It shows whelping season isn't over yet.

8 a.m. It rained hard during the night, and is snowing this morning. Checked the food sites. All food in the open is gone - no tracks. The hot dog under the grass is still there - no tracks. Must be crows.

10 a.m. Be still my beating heart. Just looked out the window and there was a fox sitting in our back yard, right by the garden and the ditch that runs behind it. I didn't know whether to grab the binoculars or run out with food. Decided to run out with last night's leftover carrots. It looked like either Pepper or Grey Back. Would need the glasses to be sure. The fox moved off as I came out into the yard. It headed for the pine plantation. I started yelling "kit kit" as I was running toward the garden and ditch. The fox stopped and turned and listened as I continued calling "kit kit" and tossing carrots. It sat and watched me and watched where every piece fell. I went back into the house (standing in a rainy snow in slippers isn't too smart) and the fox went into the pine plantation. Oh thrill!

Afternoon/evening: The fox (Greyback or Pepper) worked its way up the lane several times today. Kept going in and out of the drainage ditch that is adjacent to the lane. There is running water there now so s/he may have been thirsty, or just inquisitive. Even with the binoculars I couldn't tell who it was because of in and out of the brush and the ditch. It was as if it was an advance scout or forward observer to check out the lay of the land.

It was no surprise tonight to find the meat under the grass gone with lots of fox prints in the loose dirt around the site. Left more bits tonight. Some in the open and some under the grass. However, if no more sightings this week I am still content. It was almost as if Greyback/Pepper said "See? Here I am. Now be satisfied and let me go about my business."

Apr 29

Heavy frost last night, but absolutely calm, sunny, and beautiful this morning for my 7 a.m. walk up the hill. The 'open' food was gone with skunk tracks around the sitting rock. The 'buried' food had fox tracks leading directly to it and the covering grass tossed aside with apparent utter disdain for my caching technique.

Evening: Tragedy strikes!!! Started my evening rounds with the cottage down by the shore since the last two days showed some fresh dirt outside. Food was gone in the outer perimeter. As I got close to the shack with its entrance hole, I thought "Oh good. There must be a litter moving in as there is a "kill" left outside." As I got closer, I could see it was a dead kit. I didn't dare move it, but there were no marks on it that I could see. It soft grey fur was blowing in the breeze. It looked well formed. Whether it died a "crib death" and the mother removed it from the den or whether it didn't survive the move to this den, I don't know. I left food about 6 feet from the den and left with a sad heart.

Left food at the sitting rock and smoothed the dirt around it to remove any prior tracks. By the time I did the same at the top of the hill, I could see crows circling the sitting rock. In the time it took me to do the deed at the hill top, the crows had cleaned up the sitting rock. No fair! The wind was blowing the grass off my "cache" so had to put little pebbles to help hold it down. I'm sure the fox will find it.

Apr 30

Raccoon tracks, skunk tracks and fox tracks at the feeding sites. The pebbles lined up on one side, but the grass replaced. Perhaps the fox was showing me how it *should* be done.

Scott MacDonald emailed me on 4/30

How old was the kit? Fox kits do play rather roughly and it is not uncommon for the "runts" of the litter to be accidentally killed during play. Was the kit old enough to have teeth?

I replied

I didn't look. Didn't want to touch it in case it would upset the Mother. It had long toenails tho. I don't know age . . . but I would guess maybe 4 weeks. Curled up it would fit into a cereal bowl. (*Why* do I always think of food connections?)

4:00 pm Ruth (neighbor who can see old shed by the shore easier than I can) just called to let me know an adult fox is stretched out in the sun in front of the old shed where the entrance to the den is. She can't tell if there are kits there or not.

Evening hunt. No sign of foxes. Baby kit carcass is gone. Left food at the regular sites. Stayed at least 10 feet from opening of den under shack by the shore. Didn't want to upset anyone in there. Left food as I called "kit kit". Driving the old green Toyota again this year; the distinctive whine of the engine should let them know the caterer is coming. That car now has 169,000 miles on it (miles - not kilometers) and I have no idea if it will get us thru another summer or not.

May 1

My morning walk up the hill verified food was gone. As many raccoon tracks as fox tracks. Don't know which animal is getting there first.

Evening - we ate late which meant my fox hunt was later than usual. No sightings. Much evidence of traffic in and out at the den under the shack by the shore.

One hour later - Tom was rototilling the garden, it was dusk, I was bored, so drove up the hill. I surprised a gorgeous fox who was eating the food at the top of the hill. I didn't see it until it ran into the spruce trees so I only viewed the fox from the back; it had a beautiful auburn coat with a dark patch on the back and a huge gorgeous fluffy tail. I went further up the hill, parked, and waited for 20 minutes, but it never came back again. Must have taken all the food.

May 3

Walk up the hill this morning revealed coyote scat deposited on top of the grass covering my "cache" of hot dog. Huge, coal black, shiny like new tar - sitting there like an obscene message.

Two hours later drove up with a shovel. Tom buried the scat at least two feet deep. He also dug fresh clay to cover the feeding area; about 1" new soil over the site. The old grass was taken away and covered with dirt. There should be nothing left there with coyote scent, unless he sprayed in a less obvious area.

Evening: Left food and covered with new grass. We'll see what the morrow brings. The passage under the old cottage by the shore is really getting worn down. Must be lots of traffic.

May 4

9:22 a.m. email from Ruth.(she has unobstructed of cottage by shore)

>>Just peeked through the telescope in my room and saw a baby fox (a soft taupy-grey colour) by the shed foundation. Momma, who is watching out for him/her, is a sort of caramel toffee colour.<<

10:00 a.m. - drove up hill (no walk today) and found fresh FOX scat at sitting rock and fox tracks at top of hill. No sign of coyote - must have been passing thru and marking range.

Evening fox hunt - flash of red disappeared into the spruce trees as the old Toyota groaned up the hill. It means some wee beastie has learned to tell time and was waiting for the snacks. Called "kit kit" but no one or nothing came out.

May 5

Early morning check up the hill; fox, skunk, and raccoon tracks at the sitting rock; fox tracks and scat at top of hill.

10:30 a.m. - While we were in town Ruth called & left a message that Mama fox and 2 kits were out sunning themselves by the shed. By the time we returned 3 hours later there was no sign of them.

Evening hunt - left the food and warned whomever was listening that I was leaving for a month tomorrow. Asked them to be good and a little more obvious when I returned.

May 15

Email from Ruth

"Janet's foxes down at the shed by the shore. So far I have only been able to make out two kits and one parent, but everybody appears healthy and playful and the little ones spend simply hours at 'hide and seek' from between the spokes of the old wagon wheels. "

May 17

Email from Ruth

>>Earlier today I was introducing ******** to your little fox family down by the shore through the spyglass in my bedroom ... and guess what ... there are THREE kits! All appear healthy and frisky (they've matured to the "let's all gang up and pounce on Momma!" stage) and the vixen looks relaxed and quite well, except that her fur is looking rather ratty. (Didn't you tell me the adults start shedding about this time of year?)

May 20

Email from Ruth

PS: 'Looked in on' your little family several times yesterday. We had feared that since Visser's field is now being worked Momma Fox might be spooked. However, when she was out hunting in our field, her movements looked most precise and purposeful. At one point she got close enough for me to see that her neck ruff is really in tatters. (Hope she's merely shedding and not a victim of some sort of mange.) And I've seen all three kits during the last 24 hours and everybody looks frisky and healthy. We're keeping our dogs in the yard, although Buffy keeps looking frequently (and longingly) through the gate to the shore, then back at me! I could control her down by the water, but 'Princess' is an unknown quantity with an incredible nose and I don't wish to place our little 'Momma' under any more stress than she's already exposed to

May 24

Email from Ruth

Jack and Edith were here for dinner last night and reported that they haven't seen our foxes by the shore since 'Momma Fox' (in Jack's words: "her pups following behind her like a row of little lambs") fled from trying to face down the huge potato-planting machine that was impreding her progress down the edge of the field and to the beach.

That was last Tuesday or Wednesday and I haven't seen any sign of them either. Worse, the grass even appears to be growing over the bare spot near their den.

Jun 3

Arrived on the Island late afternoon. Steak and all the trimmings for dinner. Tom sawed the steak bones to 1" lengths and I took some of those plus leftover carrots, potatoes, etc. to the top of the hill and sitting rock. No one came out while I was there.

Jun 4

Morning: Carrots still on sitting rock. Everything else there and at top of hill gone.

Evening: Left steak bits and potatoes at top of hill. Carrots till on sitting rock. Hard rain all day.

Jun 5

Steady driving rain for the past two days.

Morning: Carrots still on sitting rock. Everything else in both places gone - except for the few carrots I left last nite at the top of the hill. They remain. Getting depressed.

Afternoon: Rain stopped briefly. Took a chance and drove back as far as the loop road. Found a dead fox kit at the entrance to the loop road. It looked to be three to four weeks old; a late-in-the-year birth. The coloring was very similar to Banjo's two years ago. The dark brown, black, and red. The little thing was soaked (hard rain penetrating rain all night ) so we are guessing it had been dead for about 24 hours; certainly since last evening. Turning it over (using sticks) we could see no signs of injury as if it had been attacked. Deterioration had not yet started.

Evening: Put chicken scraps out and the crows were diving for them before I got back to the car. Pulled weeds and grass and covered the tid bits hoping the crows won't see what the foxes can smell.

Jun 7

Bright sunny day. Drove back into the woods. Dead kit's body deteriorating. Took shovel and threw it into woods. On the main road leading up to the first turn-around found coyote tracks. Followed them for about 50 feet. Very clear in the rain-softened clay. The straddle wasn't very much (width) but the stride (length) was humoungous. That feller was traveling FAST. Some were absolutely text book classic prints. The divisions of the pad and the toe nails were very clear. Followed the tracks to close to the 2nd turnaround. Instead of going straight I suggested to Tom we go down that way. Found more tracks close to the Y where the Upper Spring Road and the Osprey Road (formerly Lower Spring Road) separate. I continued walking along the Upper Spring Road but found no more tracks. About 20 feet from the end (one large turn-around) there was an obscenely coal black HUGE pile of scat right in the middle of the road. The shovel came in handy once more as we tossed that into the woods. Retraced our steps and went down the Osprey Road. Didn't bother to look for tracks until we came to the Cross road connecting it to the Circle Road. Sure 'nuff, coyote tracks there going at an angle into the wood lot that had been thinned several years ago. When Scott blew his coyote caller last year, the response came from this area so I was not surprised to see them. No further signs. After our tour, Tom was working in the garden and I was standing and talking to him. I looked down and saw that the garden was littered with fox tracks. What's that saying about one's own backyard?

No sightings tonight as I left food and waited.

Jun 8

Morning: All food gone from under grass "cover" at feeding sites. At top of hill a tiny piece of scat was left. Skunk? Raccoon? Small fox effort? Don't know if there were several foxes or just one going up and down every row of our garden, but maximum fox prints left.

Evening: Tom put some fresh clay at end of Loop Road. Will try this as feeding site. Covered chicken (in the midst of the clay) with grass. We'll see what kind of prints we get. More fresh clay put down at top of hill. Cached some chicken in the garden. It is hoped the results will be interesting.

Jun 9

Morning: My "cache" at the end of the Loop Road was untouched. All other sites gone. Fox prints at the top of the hill. Many fox tracks closer to home; looked as if they were line dancing thru the garden.

Evening: That's it! I'm done. Left tidbits and waited. No show. From now on "no show - no food." Let them eat worms!

Jun 14

The house was locked for the night and was watching TV when I thought "give it another shot". So, I grabbed my packet of scraps and drove up the lane between the spruce trees. as I got to the top of the hill I surprised a fox that was coming down from the sitting rock. It quickly disappeared into the trees. All I saw was that it was small and from the tail it looked like a kit; it didn't have a bush, and the white tip looked more like a paint brush. I left food and kept calling "kit kit". The dirt spread at the top of the hill had been dug - a shallow hole was there as if they were looking for something I buried. Went on and drove to the end of the Loop Road where I left food. Coming back I left some scraps at Sunset Ridge and the porch of my hutka. I decided to return via the reopened lane in hopes I could look across the triangle to the top of the hill. Sure enough, through the trees I could see a fox. I got the binoculars out and the car crept forward. However, the idle revved up and the fox didn't run, but did disappear behind the mound. I couldn't see if it was the same one or a different one. Hoooooray!!!

Jun 15

Hard, driving rain. Didn't go back.

Jun 16

Curiouser and curiouser. Left cat food hidden by grass at the top of the hill this morning. It was gone when I made the evening rounds. Left chicken bits and boiled potato covered by grass at the top of the hill and boiled potato at the other sides. The crows are now following the car and immediately swooped down on a few bread pieces I left at Sunset ridge. I guess I'll have to cover everything with grass. I parked by the sitting rock and waited with binoculars.

After waiting about 15 minutes, at 8:30 pm on the dot, a fox appeared at the top of the hill. It is the same one I saw two nights ago. I'm absolutely baffled. This fox is the size of a 6 month old kit - impossible, I know. It runs like a kit, has a tail that is tapered from the rump to the tip with no brush like a kit, acts like a kit, but has a more mature body. Guess it must be a small yearling female. It doesn't look like any of "mine". A very blond crown to the head and a dark grey saddle from the nape of the neck down the rump. I was downwind of the fox so could view with complete equanimity.

S/he was very relaxed as it lay down to eat. It spent a good 10 minutes eating the bones, and in one case tossed it up in the air and pounced on it to "re-kill" it. Near the end of the session it took several items into the spruce trees, I assume to cache it. S/he came out just to make sure all was gone when a crow caw'd. The fox started and jumped into the grass. S/he came out seconds later, stood at the alert, looked all around, ate the last potato and trotted off.

Jun 17

Went up at 8:30. Wind has died down considerably. Left food hidden by grasses. Waited by sitting rock; nothing. At first I thought it strange the crows weren't following me and then I saw why. There were about 2 dozen of them in the tops of the spruce trees down at the other end. They kept cawing and circling the area when the den has been in previous years. I waited for 30 minutes and during that time the noise was nearly deafening. No fox. My worst fear is that the den is back in use and another dead kit is outside. It looked like DuMaurier's Hitichcock version of The Birds. Really eerie. Finally the constant cawing, the swooping, and circling got to me and I returned to the house. Blessed silence.

Jun 18

Email from Scott

>>THAT CROW BEHAVIOR IS USsually demonstrated when a predator such as a hawk or fox has ventured too close to the young crows or has actually killed a young crow. The fact that the crows kept swooping down might indicate that the fox was among the crows.<<

Left dry cat food covered with grass at top of hill in the early a.m.

Evening - picking Tom up from airport. Check site before I leave; cat food still there. Check site at 9:30 p.m., cat food still there.

Jun 20

The fox appeared again tonight, right on schedule. Tom had mowed a strip around the bottom of the spruce trees (so I can eventually drive there) and s/he was watching me come up the lane. I left steak trimmings and potato and proceeded to the hutka where I turned around. Let the car creep down past the sitting rock, and settled in with binoculars to watch. After 20 minutes I decided to leave and check the Loop Road. Coming back I returned via the reopened lane and saw that the crows had denuded the bread from the sitting rock. When I got opposite to the top of the hill, there was the fox cleaning up the scraps. Again, alert but relaxed enough to eat in a prone position. The grass in that "triangle" (reopened lane to apex at sitting rock to top of hill between the spruce trees) is so long that when s/he lay down, s/he disappeared. I couldn't get a good view of the legs to see if the white stifle gene passed down by White Hips was visible. However, this fox does not look like any that we have seen on this property before. I am guessing from a completely different family. It is, however, an adult. That I could see tonight.

For one, it has a completely red face without the "mascara lines" that our previous foxes have had. Secondly, the violet doesn't show; the dark saddle extends right down the tail to the startling white tip. Thirdly, the face is narrower and has a "foxier" look than White Hip's offspring had. This fox has a black throat and chest. Except for the head, it almost has Banjo's coloring. Gary, the fox farmer on the Internet, says this color is called "smokey red" and it carries the gene for silver.

While the rest of PEI seems blessed with a bumper crop of foxes this year, the area we are in seems to have a dearth. There are no road killed foxes (thank heaven), and people just aren't spotting any. Everyone around here is complaining about the increase in mice because the foxes aren't keeping them down. Whether a disease swept thru this area or what is unknown.

It is a mystery to me why only one fox is showing up for snacks. Is this a new fox moving into an untenated range? Or, is it one of White Hips descendants that looks more like 'the other side of the family?'

Jun 22

A different fox appears tonight. And this one looks more like one of 'our' family of foxes. Tom mowed the 'triangle' today as well as the driving strips around the fields. I was wondering if the tall grass prevented the foxes from appearing since they are used to mowed strips. It certainly seemed to work tonight as we got a different one. This fox was orange red, had the black 'mascara drips' from the corners of the eyes down the muzzle, and half its face was white. In fact the upper half from the eyes to the crown was red and the lower half white with a very straight dividing line between the two. The violet showed on the rump. It appeared to have the white stifles passed down from White Hips. I would need to see this fox several more times but it looked very much like last year's Cinnamon. The video camera quit after 10 seconds; battery hasn't been recharged since Christmas.

Jun 23

The dark fox showed tonight. Since Gary tells me his/her coloring sounds like a Smokey Red we shall call this fox Smokey. The car was parked closer to the top of the hill tonight and Smokey wasn't as comfortable as when the car was hidden. S/he stood to eat and kept looking up at the car. I left food on both sides of the lane. Stale bread on one side and chicken gizzards, mashed potato and chicken wing on the other side. There is no guessing as to which side Smokey went to first. The big T-bone from the steak was investigated, then set aside while the rest of the food was plundered. Then the stale bread given a try. Then s/he picked up the steak bone and came trotting up the lane toward the car. About 10 feet from the car, s/he cut across the triangle (which Tom had mowed) and up the reopened lane behind the sitting rock. Got some great video. The front legs are black up to the shoulders. The back legs are red with a little black down the right stifle. The tail is gorgeous. I take back what I said several days ago. The white on either side of the tail looked brighter and more prominent tonight. The dark color is all over the back, sides, and tail. The head and some of the shoulders are red. An interesting side note - Smokey left food at both sites; not the choice bits, mind you, but food in any case. We noticed this in previous years. It appears that they leave food for another family member. If they are not hungry, but want it for themselves, they cache it.

Jun 25

Hot, humid day. Took a drive back in the woods this afternoon just to find some cool shade. Passing the mound by the brook I discovered the mother partridge and her chicks displayed all over the mound. The chicks scattered immediately as the car came even with it, but Mother Partridge held her ground. Looks like the coyotes didn't get The Partridge Family this year after all.

Evening: Drove straight back to the woods to leave bread and cereal for The Partridge Family. On my way out left Milk Bone at the sitting rock, stale bread bits (communion size) on the right hand side of the hill at the top of the spruce trees and corn, beans, pork chop bits, and chicken fat on the left hand side - the regular feeding spot. Then drove down part way to the house, turned around, came back up the reopend lane as far as the hutka, turned around, rolled past the sitting rock and there was Smokey already at the treats. Turned the car off and put the break on. The car is old so it made a groan as it rolled a few inches after the breaking. Smokey jumped and went into the trees. About 5 minutes later s/he came out on the reopened lane and trotted half way up to stare at the car. This put Smokey right in the open - brave little thing. Finally went back into the spruce trees, across the bottom of the triangle, and out to the top of the hill where s/he ate everything on both sides of the lane. Then, s/he proceeded to lie down, groom itself thoroughly, and put its head down and take a 15 minute nap - RIGHT IN THE MIDDLE OF THE LANE. After the nap, a little more grooming, sniffing around to see if any treats might have appeared during the snooze, and then trotted up the lane toward the car, cut thru the triangle and up the reopened lane to the sitting rock (behind me). I could see thru the rear view mirror that s/he had jumped up on the rock and ate the Milk Bone. Then back thru the triangle, with a stop about 15 feet from the car to stare at it some more, and back to the hill top for a little more grooming. I couldn't believe it when Smokey settled down for another nap!!! It's almost as if s/he had made a date to meet - instead of under the clock at Marshall Fields, at the top of the hill. I waited another 7 minutes and decided I had already spent an hour with this one fox and I needed to go home. I started the motor and Smokey allowed the car to advance to within 15 feet before s/he jumped into the trees.

Jun 26

Smokey was waiting for me as I drove up. S/he fled into the trees as I got close but came out immediately after I left food and drove off. I turned around at the sitting rock and came back to the top of the hill to watch. Once again Smokey escaped to the safety of the trees, but when the car didn't move again, came out to eat. Same scenario, minus the nap, as yesterday.

Rained hard last night. Found a water logged dead bird by the end of the loop road. I think the Goshawk must have killed the kit we found there (identical coloring to Smokey's) and perhaps the bird and dropped them in the storm. Same weather condiditions each time.

Jun 27

Whatta night! My great niece Jennifer accompanied me on the fox hunt. Left food in all the sites and returned to the top of the hill to wait. The crows were making noise and circling and cawing as if the world were ending. Suddenly we saw Smokey trotting down the reopened lane with a small crow in its mouth. Since neither Jen nor I like crows we both exclaimed "Way to go Smokey!" Smokey went into the spruce trees with its catch. A few minutes later another fox came out of the spruce trees on the other side of the lane and filled its mouth with all the food (ham and bread) I had left and trotted back into the trees. This fox had grey in its coat but was lighter than Smokey. No sooner had this fox disappeared than Smokey came out, filled his/her mouth with the remaining food and disappeared into the trees. There must be a litter somewhere I think, otherwise they would eat the food at the feeding site as done previously.

Jun 28

Great excitement! Two adult foxes showed tonight. Smokey (who finally showed his underside and he is male and will now be Smokie) and the red fox kit.

Darlin was definitely dominent tonight. Hip barged Smokie to the other side of the lane, snarled, gekked, and barged again. Then - did the famous TAIL DRAPING that I have only seen in last year's "C" litter. I've never seen other foxes do this. Got some great video of the two of them. Unfortunately we forgot the hookup cord to the TV so it will have to wait until I go back to Chicago until I can view the current footage.

Jun 29

Daarlin showed up a few minutes after I had left treats and parked to watch. She sat and gave me a good view of her undercarriage. From the tuft of hair low on the belly I am assuming this fox is a male. She was alone tonight and ate all the ham and chicken from the top of the hill. She carefully left the bread and the apple. (Talk about getting all the good bits.) She never looked at the brand new feeding site on the other side of the lane. Smokie knows about it however since it was the only place she got to eat last night. I waited another 30 minutes after Darlin left to see if Smokie would show, but she didn't. A skunk, however, came out of the spruce trees, stopped in the middle of the lane and looked at me before continuing at a much faster pace across the lane and into the trees on the other side.

Smokie also looks to be in good condition, except the lack of ruff around her neck and her big ears does make her look like the Taco Bell chihuahua.

Jun 30

Tom walked thru the spruce trees at the top of the hill to check the den in the midst. It's by a year round spring. It was all overgrown and had no signs of use.

Had a dinner invitation so just left food when I got home late. It was raining so didn't wait.