This photo may not look like much but I am super happy about it. That's a fox's blurry back end in the left of the photo!
Last Monday I set the camera up overlooking a ground hole in the wood that had recently been excavated by an animal. The smell around the hole indicted that it was a fox that had been digging in the area.
We raked the soft sand that had been dug from the hole so that any new footprints would be visible and indicate an animal had returned.
I left the camera for 5 nights and retrieved it this afternoon. We were excited to find fresh prints in the soft sand. They are definitely that of a fox.
The hole is at the bottom of the photo in the centre. The orange sand that has been excavated has several paw prints from a fox.
Impressions from the claws are clearly visible on the left side of this print.
Excitedly I removed the camera quickly and retreated away from the hole so as not to disturb the fox if it is down the hole, and so that as little of our scent as possible is left lingering around the area.
Hurrah! Two photos and one video of a fox!
The fox tail is easily identifiable and the entrance to the hole is the dark area just to the right of the tail.
The fox appears to stop, look directly at the camera and tilt its head inquisitively. Maybe the fox could smell my scent on the camera.
The camera was set up to take a photo followed by a 60 second video. Annoyingly, it looks like the fox has come out of the hole and taken several steps before the camera has snapped the photos.
The photos are blurry but the video is clear. Still a fantastic result for my first time catching foxes on camera.
I shall recharge the batteries and place the camera back by the hole but try a different position. If the camera looks towards the entrance as though it is looking inside, then maybe it will have a better chance of capturing the fox coming out of, or going into, the hole.
It will be amazing if the fox has a mate and they plan to have their cubs in the earth. Foxes mate between January and March and cubs are born 58 weeks later. Cubs will venture out of the earth at around four to five weeks of age. So hopefully we may see some cubs around April or May time. This gives me plenty of time to get the camera settings and location perfect for capturing them on camera.
