Mysterious and solitary, the fox is one of the most widespread wild canines in the world, although it is most commonly found in Europe and the northern hemisphere of America. There are more than 27 species of this creature that have adapted to any terrestrial environment, from freezing cold to African deserts. They are characterized by the fact that they do not form groups: it is for this reason that they usually hunt individually and not in packs.
She is considered a skilled hunter and an extremely intelligent animal: when she hunts she uses her highly developed senses to identify prey and attack it by surprise. The fox could be classified among the opportunistic animals as it is able to adapt its diet to the most available food, the surplus of which is stored underground to be then consumed at a later time.
How do foxes feed?
Its developed senses allow the fox to be very efficient when it comes to hunting for food. The fox consumes from small mammals to fish and invertebrates to carrion as needed. This feature makes it an omnivorous animal with a very versatile diet.
One could generalize that foxes’ favorite food is mice, however, foxes can also hunt rabbits or even feed on fruit. This animal has shown a great ability to adapt to urban environments where it feeds on the remains of organic garbage or food stolen from pets.
Many of the places where the fox lives are usually linked to human activity: this is because, due to agricultural plantations, the presence of rodents is very high. It is, for this reason, that man has often exploited this characteristic of the foxes’ diet to control the plague of mice: it is in fact unlikely that foxes will eat cultivated fruit if they have mice available.
The predatory activity exerted by man on animals such as the eagle, the lynx, and the wolf has ensured the fox’s survival in an environment almost totally free from its natural predators.
When there is a shortage of food, foxes feed on a wide variety of insects, among which we find mainly spiders and beetles. Some more astute individuals may even go so far as to hunt unwary birds. Despite the fox’s daily intake is around 1 kg of food, foxes can hunt even when they have no appetite: in fact, they never disdain food that they can bury and eat later.
