The Red Fox's Secrets: Cunning Creatures and Their Wild Ways.

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Red foxes can be red, silver, black, cross, platinum, amber, or white. They have darker legs and white bellies. 

In the rolling hills and dense woodlands of Southern Missouri, the red fox is a creature both admired and often misunderstood. Known for their vibrant red coats, bushy tails, and sharp features, these foxes are a symbol of the wild, elusive spirit of the region. But the question often arises: are red foxes truly as sneaky as they’re made out to be?

For years, the red fox has been portrayed as a cunning, crafty animal, darting silently through the underbrush, slipping away unnoticed after a clever trick. While it's true that they possess remarkable agility and sharp instincts, calling them “sneaky” doesn’t quite capture the full picture of their behavior. Foxes are intelligent hunters and opportunists, often using their quick reflexes and keen senses to navigate through the forests and fields. They rely on their stealth, not out of malice, but as a survival mechanism—whether it’s hunting small mammals or avoiding larger predators.

But it’s their instincts that truly set them apart, and what makes them appear so elusive. A red fox's survival relies heavily on a set of finely tuned instincts. They possess an acute sense of hearing, sight, and smell that allows them to detect prey, predators, and changes in their environment with remarkable precision. Their ability to be so quiet and quick is an evolutionary adaptation developed over generations to outwit predators and catch prey without alerting them. A fox’s body is built for stealth: their slender build, sharp reflexes, and light-footed movements allow them to move through forests and fields with near-silence, which often leads to their "sneaky" reputation.

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Red Foxes are illusive but surprisingly, they are very social with other foxes. There are over 40 species of red foxes and sometimes red foxes are not red.

When it comes to speed, red foxes are incredibly quick, capable of running up to 30 miles per hour when they need to. This speed is another survival tool in their arsenal, helping them escape predators and catch fast-moving prey. Whether they’re sprinting across an open field or darting between trees in the forest, their agility and speed make them formidable creatures in the wild. They are opportunistic feeders, often employing their intelligence to find food, whether it’s a small rodent, a bird, or even scavenging from a larger predator's kill. Their instinct to assess situations quickly and decide whether to hunt or retreat is essential to their survival in the wild.

As the days grow longer and the air begins to warm, spring ushers in a very important time for red foxes. This season marks the peak of their mating period, which typically begins in late winter and early spring. Foxes are usually monogamous, often forming lifelong bonds with a mate, and during this time, their behavior changes as they prepare to raise a new generation. The female, or vixen, gives birth to a litter of up to six kits, usually in a den that can be located within hollowed-out trees or burrows. These kits are born blind and helpless, relying entirely on their mother for nourishment and protection during their first few weeks of life.

The relationship between the male, or dog, and the vixen is one of mutual cooperation. While the vixen tends to the young, the male is responsible for providing food for the family, hunting small game or scavenging. As the kits grow, the family dynamic shifts—over the course of the summer, the kits learn the skills they will need to survive on their own, including how to hunt and navigate the forests and fields of Southern Missouri. By the time fall arrives, the young foxes are ready to leave the den, often venturing off to establish their own territories.

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A Red Fox pair forms a bond during breeding season. They may share a home range but avoid each other except when mating. Red foxes typically pair in December or January and they may pair with the same mates from the previous year or they may also pair with new mates.

Despite their reputation for being sneaky, red foxes aren’t solitary, secretive figures. They are social animals with complex family structures. Their keen ability to adapt to different environments—from thick woodlands to the outskirts of farm fields—is part of what makes them so successful in Southern Missouri. 

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Litter size varies from a whopping 1 to 11 in size, but averages 6. Newborn red foxes are blind, weigh about (3.4 oz), and are covered with fine-textured gray fur. By 9 days of age, the eyes begin to open.