Peoples Trust for Endangered Species On Foxes

 

Peoples Trust for Endangered Species state https://ptes.org/get-informed/facts-figures/red-fox/

Threats 

Road traffic, accidental and deliberate poisoning, and shooting.

Conservation status

GB Red List: Least Concern (LC).

Population size and distribution

GB population 357,000. The British Trust for Ornithology’s Breeding Bird Survey, which records mammals a well as birds, shows a decline of almost a half (48%) in the rural population between 1995 and 2022. In more urban areas, however, the population has changed little nationally over a similar period (2003-2022), seen from records from PTES’ Living with Mammals survey. Foxes are widely distributed in Britain and Ireland but are absent from most of the Scottish islands (except Skye and Harris) and from the Scilly and Channel isles.

Firstly the estimate of a fox population of 357,000 is an estimate. We have found -through the Bristol Fox Deaths Project as well as communications with other wildlife rescues- that an estimated 100,000 foxes die per year on the roads. The Bristol Fox Deaths Register has shown that the number of vehicle kills runs into the hundreds. There is a knock on effect in that a vixen killed during cub season means that cubs starve and die. Shooters who go out to kill for 'fun' every night kill vixens as well as dog foxes and, when opportunity arises a cub is still a "bit of sport".

To this we can add what we have found out from our officially conducted post mortems; cubs can die early on from worm burden, verminous pneumonia and much more. Adults are dying from various conditions and these are not counted in the estimate of deaths because we are just finding out about them. Urban foxes are not thriving in huge numbers but have also declined. As noted on this blog a lot of effort is being put into treating sick and injured foxes because those of us dealing with the deaths of foxes (and badgers) understand that the death rate in towns and cities is high. The urban environment is far from a fox paradise. The number of "hundreds" refers to those foxes reported dead -most people do not report dead foxes or badgers.

The PTES also needs to look at other fox research to see the threats to the species. Once the final Fox Death Project report is published it ought to open more than a few eyes.

Regarding where foxes are -in The Red Paper 2022 Volume 1: Canids I showed that not just the UK but Ireland has island foxes -including the Channel Islands and Isle of Wight and Isle of Man, etc.. 

We have seen the extinction of the Old British fox and the many thousands (over 2000+ per year) imported into the UK for 'sport' from the 17th century (peaking in the 19th century) also saw a number of near extinctions in the 19th and 20th centuries and since the 1990s the number of foxes has declined nationally. In 1993/1994 the City of Bristol saw an estimated 96-97% of its fox population when mange (introduced by hunts through their importing of foxes) first hit the City.  It took decades for numbers to increase again but deaths are rising each year as vixens die (and their cubs) or foxes during dispersal die on the roads and it is not rare (sadly) to hear of two killed at the same time.

Red Listing foxes will not stop the 'sport' shooters killing foxes unless prosecutions take place. Foxes are also killed by snares -just because Scotland and Wales have made snares illegal does not mean those using them have stopped. And Red listing will certainly not stop vehicles killing foxes -and look how "protected species" status has 'helped' the badger! .  That written I believe that foxes in the UK should be Red Listed.

I still stand by my statement that badgers will be extremely rare by the 2030s and foxes may be the same if not in a worse situation.