Foxes

Red foxes may be the only foxes we can see in Idaho, but they come in a variety of colors.

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All winter long mice have had their way in my storage shed, making a terrible mess of everything. I finally declared war and started setting out traps. I avoided the baits that are commonly used because scavengers can be impacted secondarily by the toxins. My trapping has been wildly successful yielding 2-3 trapped mice each night. These I discard just outside the door of the shed and in the morning, they are gone. Our local red fox is getting bonus dinners because of my activities.

If you see a fox in Idaho, it is a red fox as that is the only species native to us. The red fox is the largest and most widespread fox species and has about 47 recognized subspecies, the record among mammals. However, red foxes are not the only foxes in the world.

There are two genera of foxes across the globe. The red fox shares the genus, Vulpes, with 11 other species, three of which (besides the red fox), the Arctic, swift and kit foxes, live on the North American continent. The other genus, Urocyon, has two species, the gray fox and the island fox, both native to North America, although the endangered island fox is restricted to the Channel Islands off the coast of southern California while the gray fox thrives across much of North America. However, the gray fox is not a mountain lover and avoids Idaho, Montana and most of Washington.

Like other members of the Canidae family, foxes have triangular faces and pointed ears. Most species of foxes are a mix of gray, brown and sometimes russet. However, there are exceptions. The red fox comes in classic red, cross fox (with a dark cross on their back) or silver fox (very dark gray) and sometimes a mix of these. The Arctic fox has an all-white pelage in winter with a gray-black summer coat. Two things all foxes have in common though are a long puffy tail and a narrow pointy snout.

As the largest fox, a big male red fox can weigh in at around 19 pounds. In comparison, the Tennec fox, with ears big enough to be wings, is the smallest fox and averages around two pounds, with a big one tipping the scales at less than twice that. The kit fox (including the endangered San Joaquin subspecies) is the smallest North American fox at an average weight of about five pounds.

The gray fox, once the most common fox in the Eastern U.S., a title now relinquished to the more adaptable red fox, has a unique feature that it shares with only one other canid, the raccoon dog: it can and does routinely climb trees. Although all foxes have partially retractable claws (similar to cats, but not as functional), the gray fox is aided in its climbing penchant by longer claws than other foxes.

There is another group of “foxes” from the genus Lycaloplex, of which there are six species, and collectively called the South American foxes. They do resemble foxes and fill similar niches, but they are more closely related to wolves and jackals than to true foxes.

Like coyotes, foxes, especially gray and red foxes, have adapted well to city life. Unfortunately for the foxes, they are on the coyote’s menu and coyotes often keep fox populations in check. However, one study indicated that foxes have learned to refine their civilized adaptation by selecting areas that are more “manicured” than a coyote tends to prefer. This division of habitat is called partitioning and is quite common in the animal world.

Despite several notable exceptions, foxes of all types seem to be doing well in this rapidly changing world. Not every animal species is so lucky.

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Help Idaho Wildlife

When we traveled across the state in October 2017, most of the vehicles we saw using the wildlife management areas did not have wildlife plates. Buying wildlife plates is a great way for non-hunters and hunters alike to support wildlife-based recreation like birding.

C'mon folks, let's help Idaho's wildlife by proudly buying and displaying a wildlife license plate on each of our vehicles! 

See below for information on Idaho plates. Most states have wildlife plates so if you live outside Idaho, check with your state's wildlife department or vehicle licensing division for availability of state wildlife plates where you live. 

And tell them that you heard about it from Nature-track.com!

Wildlife License Plates

Great news! as of 2024, there are three NEW designs for license plates. They still are bluebird, cutthroat trout and elk, but they are beautiful.

Idaho Wildlife license plates provide essential funding that benefits the great diversity of native plants and wildlife that are not hunted, fished or trapped—over 10,000 species or 98% of Idaho’s species diversity. Game species that share the same habitats (such as elk, deer, antelope, sage-grouse, salmon, trout) also benefit from these specialty plates.

No state tax dollars are provided for wildlife diversity, conservation education and recreation programs. Neither are any revenues from the sale of hunting or fishing licenses spent on nongame species. Instead, these species depend on direct donations, federal grants, fundraising initiatives—and the Idaho Wildlife license plates.

Both my vehicles have Bluebird Plates. I prefer the bluebird because the nongame program gets 70 percent of the money from bluebird plates, but only 60 percent of the money from elk and trout plates - 10 percent of the money from elk plates supports wildlife disease monitoring and testing programs (to benefit the livestock industry) and 10 percent from cutthroat plates supports non-motorized boat access.

Incidentally, in 2014, the Idaho Legislature denied the Department of Fish and Game the ability to add new plates or even to change the name of the elk and cutthroat plates (very specific) to wildlife and fish plates, a move that would have allowed for changing images occasionally and generating more revenue. It would seem that they believe that we Idahoans don't want a well funded wildlife program.

I think it is time we let the Legislature know that Idahoan support wildlife funding and that we would like to see these generic plates come to fruition.