How Many Baby Foxes Are Born at a Time

(3) Fox cubs - first emergence from the den

After around 4 weeks, the cubs start to venture above ground, hesitantly initially. By this time, their coat is darkish brown, often with a reddy tinge to the face; their ears are a little more like those of adults - longer and more erect; and their muzzle has lengthened and will continue to do so as full adult facial features are progressively developed over the next 4 - 6 weeks.

Two young fox cubs peer out of a heathland den
(Photo 186130162 / Fox Cubs © Rejean Bedard | Dreamstime.com)

Adult coat colour is also fully assumed over this period, starting, at least in some animals, at the front and working backwards.

Following first emergence, hunting and foraging instincts quickly kick in as the cubs seek out earthworms and insects to supplement a mixture of 'mother's milk' and solid food brought back for them by both the dog fox and vixen. Relatively large mammals, such as rabbits and birds, are often provided for the cubs, whilst for themselves at this time, the adults apparently favour smaller prey items, such as mice and voles.

Returning fox parents are usually greeted with a great deal of excitement by the hungry cubs. In fact, it is probably more accurate to say that a chaotic melee ensues.

When not fully weaned, some of the fox cubs may immediately suckle the returning vixen, whilst whatever prey item has been brought back will be quickly taken and carried away by other, maybe more developed, youngsters, often after a spirited tug-of-war between competing siblings.

Those that miss out on the solid food and are unable, or not inclined, to suckle may simply, agitatedly nuzzle the adult's mouth and throat, and maybe whine, to encourage regurgitation of partly digested food and maybe spur on a speedy resumption of hunting.

Four fox cubs await the return of a parent, they hope with food for the growing brood

Cubs are suckled for around 4 weeks and progressively weaned thereafter. Some are fully weaned by around 6 - 7 weeks of age, whilst others may still be suckling well beyond this stage.

Certainly not all cubs necessarily develop at the same rate, for within a litter may be very well-grown, well-fed, dominant youngsters - almost miniature adults in appearance - that by virtue of their strength, regularly succeed when competing for food with siblings; alongside other smaller, less developed, subordinate cubs that still retain their 'baby face' features. Indeed, right from birth, fox cubs - like many other wild creatures - are in a battle for life where only the fittest survive.

'Play' fights are a regular occurrence and, again, dominant cubs usually exert their authority, sometimes cruelly picking on weaker siblings.

(4) Fox cubs - survival of the fittest and eventual dispersal

Almost inevitably, some cubs do not survive, and it has even been said that in the first weeks of life, as many as 20% die underground, often as a result of squabbles with siblings, their tiny, lifeless bodies consumed by surviving brothers and sisters. Maybe the unfortunates were inherently weak - the runts of the litter - and destined for a short life; or maybe they were simply unlucky, always at the end of the queue when trying to suckle.

A fox cub explores the area around the den

In the weeks immediately after first emergence, the cubs that have survived the early traumas of life tend to stay close to the den, but as confidence grows they progressively wander farther afield, spurred on in part by curiosity, in part by growing mobility and in part by the natural urge for independence.

Research suggests that cubs often abandon the den in June and lie up during the day in undergrowth, whilst by mid-July they are usually of similar appearance to the adults, although often with a tendency towards a more long-legged, lanky look. They then increasingly follow their parents on hunting expeditions and start to forage for themselves.

All, or at least most, males disperse from late-September through to mid-winter, whilst the proportion of dispersing females is considerably lower and probably, at least in part, reflects the mortality rate amongst the established population. Dispersal distances of 250 km have been recorded but these are almost certainly exceptional, at least in the UK - in rural mid-Wales, for example, research showed that males moved an average of 14 km and females 6.5 km.

By early autumn, when around 6 - 7 months old, after their winter coat has replaced that of summer, the cubs are largely indistinguishable from adults.

A long-legged, gangly juvenile fox

The image above was taken at the end of May, close to an active foxes' den. The animal is relatively long-legged, a characteristic most often associated with juveniles, but young of the year by this time would not normally be so well-grown. It is more likely, then, that it is actually a very thin, gangly young adult, a first time breeder that has been too busy feeding its cubs rather than itself.

How Many Baby Foxes Are Born at a Time

Source: http://www.newforestexplorersguide.co.uk/wildlife/mammals/foxes/family-life.html

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