The foul and most foreign fox

A report on the Urban Fox Control Workshop published in Basalt to Bay Landcare Network newsletter this August.

It’s sobering to consider that the destructive presence of the European red fox is a consequence of that Australian bugbear the cultural cringe. Hunting foxes was the preserve of aristocrats back in the old country, and it seems that foxes were released by the likes of pastoralist Thomas Chirnside in the 1870s to elevate Victoria socially in the eyes of its colonial masters. Now ranking second only to Homo sapiens as the most serious threat to Australian native animals, the fox is so widespread, clever and adaptable that control is a challenging proposition.

On the evening of 26 July, hungry for knowledge about Vulpes vulpes, twenty-eight of us gathered at the Foreshore Pavilion in Warrnambool for the Urban Fox Control Workshop. The highly credentialed presenter, Tim Bloomfield, did not disappoint.

Tim has worked in pest control for the last 35 years and is an acknowledged expert on foxes. Currently co-ordinating the Grow West project in the radically altered landscape of the Upper Werribee Catchment, Tim has contributed to many important vermin research and control programs. These include protecting Phillip Island’s little penguins from fox predation, a study into the urban fox in metropolitan Melbourne, and the Fox Eradication Program in Tasmania.

These experiences have helped Tim establish some guiding principles in controlling foxes. Here’s my take on his mantra.

The best time to see foxes is early morning or early evening, coinciding with the time their primary food source is active; rabbits. The best season to impact on foxes is September to December, when they are breeding.

Foxes are middle-order predators that kill quickly and efficiently before a higher-order predator comes along. The fox reacts instinctively to movement and will keep killing as long as its victims keep moving. Hence the carnage one fox can do in a chicken coop, leaving many dead birds uneaten. The only way to mitigate this mass killing is to stop interaction between the fox and its prey.

To impact effectively on foxes requires a population-wide approach. Only a co-ordinated campaign across an area bounded by natural barriers, like on islands or between rivers, has much chance of success. Territories overlap, so when a fox is killed, other foxes will move in quickly to claim the vacant territory, sometimes within hours. Even if a large area is temporarily cleared, foxes readily migrate and will come in from surrounding regions.

Trapping, shooting and bounties have limited efficacy. After initial successes, usually measured by kill rate, it becomes more difficult to find the remaining foxes. Foxes learn quickly and modify their behaviour to avoid detection and capture. The cost of continuing these measures becomes prohibitive and control ceases. Either enough individuals survive to regenerate the population or foxes move in from neighbouring zones. A coordinated long-term baiting program is the best way to control foxes, integrated with other measures like clearing weed infestations and fumigating dens.

Neither sightings nor body counts are good indicators of effective fox control. It is best to monitor species that the fox has been impacting on. For example, increases or decreases in the number of possums or penguins are reliable indicators of success or failure in controlling fox numbers.

Pet owners who feed their animals outside feed foxes. Some people leave food out specifically for foxes. A study at Webb Dock uncovered an ironic situation. Ports are high-risk entry points for rabies into Australia. Foxes are carriers and spreaders of the disease. Despite this, port security guards encouraged a resident population of foxes by feeding them regularly, sometimes for many years. Stopping people feeding and encouraging foxes is vital.

That’s all very well, but how do you know for certain a fox is patrolling your patch? In my case, I monitor beach-nesting birds that lose eggs and chicks with sickening regularity. They face many threats, so how can I tell if a fox is involved in their breeding failures? Here are some clues to look for.

A bird carcass with evidence of trauma around the head and neck is literally a dead give-away. Somewhere in the area there will be a den, comprising one or more holes bigger than a rabbit’s but smaller than a wombat’s. These are sometimes very difficult to find. Foxes use scats to mark territorial boundaries and places of significance, like potential food sources or buried caches. Their tracks are distinctive . . . once you know what you’re looking for. 

Features to look for:

• fox tracks lead in straight lines
• hairy under-paws leave soft outlines
• back footprints over-score front
• there is a gap between middle and outside pads on each paw.

If you want to know more about foxes and controlling them, here are some sources mentioned in the workshop:

They all ran wild: the animals and plants that plague Australia by Eric C. Rolls, Angus & Robertson Sydney 1984.

Improving Fox Management Strategies in Australia by Glen Saunders and Lynette McLeod, Bureau of Rural Sciences Sydney 2007; download from:
http://www.feral.org.au/improving-fox-management-strategies-in-australia

Foxes and their Impact by Tim Bloomield, Department of Primary Industries [Victoria] 2007; webpage at: http://new.dpi.vic.gov.au/agriculture/pests-diseases-and-weeds/pest-animals/foxes-and-their-impact