The Bengal fox’s preferred areas to inhabit are open pieces of grassy land and scrub. The threat of man is increasingly cutting the numbers of Bengal foxes due to both habitat destruction and hunting. Unfortunately the Bengal Fox is not thriving like it’s red counterparts.
This is unusual because defecation to claim an area is a very defining characteristic of the red fox, as many frustrated gardeners will testify to in urban areas! Interestingly, studies have shown that the Bengal fox does not mark it’s territory with urine or faeces. The litter varies between 3-6 cubs and the diet of the Bengal Fox is quite varied, ranging from rodents to insects to fruit. Like the red fox, the Bengal fox likes to dig a complicated network of tunnels to use as a hiding place and to give birth to and bring up their young. Commonly weighing between 2-4kgs and with a life expectancy of around 11 years, the Bengal Fox enjoys hunting alone at either end of the day, out of the intense heat of it’s surroundings. When compared with the common red fox, it is much slighter in appearance and has a more pointed nose along with a distinct black tip on it’s tail. In India, Bangladesh and Nepal, the most common type of fox is the Bengal Fox. The red fox is however a very durable creature and far from declining, their numbers seem to be steadily increasing, meaning that love them or hate them, the red fox is here to stay.Ī Bengal Fox (Vulpes Bengalensis) The Bengal Fox
The red fox has undergone some harsh treatment throughout the ages through fox hunting, the fox fur trade and a recent backlash caused by a few high profile fox attacks on humans.
Some common fox deterrent methods in the country are snares, fox traps and electric fences. On the one hand the fox is seen as a danger to chickens and lambs, on the other they keep rabbits and rodents off of farmland. In the countryside too, farmers often have a love-hate relationship with the red fox. The red fox can often divide opinion in urban areas, with some people enjoying them and encourage the fox into their gardens, whilst others see them as a pest and seek to purchase various fox repellent products to keep the foxes away. Mice, voles and rats are common prey but they also earthworms as well as food scraps left out in gardens. They have been known to feed on lots of different prey which has helped their survival. Hence it’s success in surviving in urban areas, particularly in the cities of London and Bristol. The Red Fox is able to live in all sorts of adverse conditions and is very adaptable to it’s environment. The red fox cubs become independent at around 3 or 4 months and can start to produce offspring of their own after about 1 year. Red fox cubs (or kits) are born into a fox ‘earth’ (a den located in a secluded place) and usually only leave after a few weeks. The mating season for foxes normally occurs in December and January and their mating rituals often involves blood curdling screaming as a form of communication. Many cubs don’t make it past 2 years old, although foxes held in captivity have been known to live for 15 years. Their life expectancy is quite wide ranging and can differ depending on whether their habitat is in the city or in the countryside. Vulpes Vulpes (to give the red fox it’s latin name) are actually part of the dog family, albeit the smallest members and can grow up to around 5kgs when fully grown. It used to be that grey wolves were the most common canines across the globe, however it has now been officially documented that the red fox has overtaken them. These foxes are the most common type of fox in the world and are the type that we find in urban areas and who come into our gardens in the UK.
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