One of the unexplained mysteries of CO2 is the rash of foxes causally walking around on sidewalks in broad daylight in my neighborhood. I’ve seen four of them already today. We used to just see them occasionally at night, but they have gotten very bold recently. I have small dogs, and the presence of the foxes is a little troubling.
Global warming is unequivocal, so I know it has something to do with CO2.
Dang, and I click on this expecting pics!
CO2 makes rabbits easier to catch, so the fox population is booming. Add that to the list.
Reminds me of this woman that posted on one of the garden forums, how we had taken over their natural habitat. It was our fault that the hawks and owls were eating her chickens and ducks……
…I politely pointed out to her that she was serving an all day and night buffet
lol, you’re right, people actually don’t make connections like they should. They just blame on the evil polluter people.
Well, you bait them in, and they will come……..
Yesterday I was talking to my neighbor outside my house. While we were talking a squirrel walked right by us like it didn’t have a worry in the world. Stopped and looked at us and went on to forage for food. It must have been the level of CO2 effecting the squirrel.
Red foxes are omnivores, which is to say they will eat almost anything, from old bread tossed away in a McDonald’s parking lot to mice, eggs, young groundhogs, grasshoppers, rats, chickens, crayfish, snails, berries, corn, potatoes, fruit, berries, and even acorns and grass.
The chief staple of the red fox, however is not sheep or chickens (as some may claim), but field mice. Unlike wolves or coyotes which will hunt in a pack to bring down large game, the red fox is a solitary hunter that patrols forest paths and field edges, listening for the rustle of mice in the grass and leaves. When a mouse is heard, the red fox will launch itself upwards at an almost 45 degree trajectory, and then pounce down on the exact location where its remarkable hearing has suggested a mouse or vole can be found.
Your dogs are safe from Red Foxes, Coyotes are another story…
The foxes peculiar behavior is due to all the hot weather and lack of snow in Colorado.
If I were affiliated with a liberal rag like the Washington Post, would have no problem getting that statement past the peer review process.
It’s really hard to hunt and eat….
…when there is record snow
We didn’t have a lot of snow on the plains this year. It was mainly confined to along the continental divide and west.
We had the 2nd highest snow total in Chicago this year so alot got past the mountains. Just beating out 1999, something about those La Nina years.
To add to Gator’s comment, their populations in some areas are cyclical depending of rodent pops and the other contributing factor is that people are so kind to foxes that they can now hunt in suburbia and do. So a pop increase would compound that effect.
Coyotes kill foxes so if coyotes are still too wary to come into suburbs then foxes have some safe space. Though coyotes are usually as quick as foxes to catch on that people aren’t trying to kill them.
Where we live – out in the country – our neighbours shoot at coyotes so they never come close to our (or any) house so the deer hang out close by when they have fawns because it is safe. Even the wolves who are here some years are less wary than coyotes because they are rarely shot at. We only get foxes here when their pops are peaking and they are far ‘tamer’ than coyotes, coming to the compost in the winter.
I have coyotes, red fox, bobcat and rare cougar sightings. I enjoy the canines company but am wary of the cats, both big and feral. The cats (both) will attack humans and dogs, and I have removed more than one feral cat from my property. I would never dream of shooting at a fox or coyote, they eat moles!
Two of our neighbors have chickens. They shoot at coyotes, for good reason. Thins out the chicken-eating coyotes. Still more than enough coyotes around.
We have cougars here too often for some people, and they are at all time historic population highs here (like most places in the West). When one decides to start killing livestock the conservation officer takes care of them. Most cause zero problems, unless you are a deer, elk or beaver – all of which they have killed on our place.
We too have removed many feral cats. Seems some townsfolk drive out here and dump them off. So we have a (live) trap.
I couldn’t imagine shooting a fox. Much better to have around than a cat for mouse control and we presume that they don’t get many birds. Nor would I ever personally shoot a coyote.
Our main potential problem species are bears, black bears all the time and grizzly bears in the fall. Almost zero actual problems here as we are very long time ‘bear aware’ people but some neighbors are less careful. And one total idiot who moved out from the big city thought it was cute to feed black bears so that caused everybody endless problems until that stopped.
But all these animals are highly intelligent individuals and, like people, some individuals turn to ‘crime’ so must be dealt with, individually.