 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
By Sharon Jansa
Geographic Range
Gray foxes occur throughout most of the southern half of North America from southern Canada to northern Venezuela and Colombia. They do not occur in portions of the mountainous northwestern United States, the Great Plains and eastern Central America.
Biogeographic Regions:
nearctic 
(native ); neotropical (native ).
Habitat
Gray foxes are found in deciduous woodlands, but are occasionally seen in old fields foraging for fruits and insects. Unlike red foxes (Vulpes vulpes), they do not prefer agricultural habitats.
These animals are found in the following types of habitat:
temperate ; terrestrial .
Terrestrial Biomes:
savanna or grassland ; forest ; scrub forest .
Physical Description
(7.92 to 14.96 lbs)
(31.5 to 44.29 in)
Gray foxes resemble small, gracile dogs with bushy tails. They are distinguished from most other canids by their grizzled upperparts, buff neck and black-tipped tail. The skull can be distinguished from all other North American canids by its widely separated temporal ridges that form a U-shape. Males are slightly larger than females. Gray foxes range from 800 to 1125 mm in length. Their tails measure 275 to 443 mm and their hindfeet measure 100 to 150 mm. They weigh 3.6 to 6.8 kg.
Some key physical features:
endothermic ; bilateral symmetry .
Sexual dimorphism: male larger.
Reproduction
Grey foxes breed once per year.
The breeding season of grey foxes varies by location.
Gray foxes are monogamous.
Mating systems:
monogamous .
The breeding season of gray foxes varies geographically. In Michigan, gray foxes mate in early March; in Alabama, breeding peaks occur in February. Where red foxes and gray foxes occur together, gray foxes breed 2 to 4 weeks after the red foxes. Gestation lasts about 53 days; the mean litter size is 3.8 and ranges from 1 to 7. By 3 months, pups begin to hunt with their parents. After four months, the young have their permanent dentition and can forage on their own. The family group remains together until autumn when the young reach sexual maturity and disperse.
Key reproductive features:
iteroparous ; seasonal breeding ; gonochoric/gonochoristic/dioecious (sexes separate); sexual ; fertilization ; viviparous .
Male and female gray foxes both provide protection for their offspring. Female gray foxes nurse their young until the young are able to hunt for themselves, when they are about four months old.
Parental investment:
altricial ; pre-fertilization (protecting: female); pre-hatching/birth (provisioning: female, protecting: female); pre-weaning/fledging (provisioning: female, protecting: male, female); pre-independence (protecting: male, female); extended period of juvenile learning.
Lifespan/Longevity
[External Source: Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research]
Gray foxes may live 6 to 10 years in the wild. (Kurta, 1995)
Behavior
Gray foxes are unique among canids in their ability to climb trees. They have strong, hooked claws that allow them to scramble up trees to avoid predators or to get fruit. They descend primarily by jumping from branch to branch. Gray foxes are nocturnal or crepuscular and den during the day in hollow trees, stumps or old woodchuck burrows. Radio tracking data suggest that family groups maintain separate home ranges.
Key behaviors:
scansorial; terricolous; nocturnal ; crepuscular ; motile ; territorial ; social .
Communication and Perception
Like all canids, gray foxes have excellent senses of sight and smell. They most likely communicate with one another through scent marking, as do other canids. (Kurta, 1995)
Communicates with:
chemical .
Other communication keywords:
scent marks .
Food Habits
Gray foxes are solitary hunters and eat a wide variety of food. The most important food source for gray foxes is probably the eastern cottontail (Sylvilagus floridanus), but voles, field mice, shrews, and birds are readily captured and eaten. Gray foxes supplement their diet with whatever fruits are readily available and generally eat more vegetable matter than red foxes (Vulpes vulpes).
Primary Diet:
omnivore .
Animal Foods:
birds; mammals.
Plant Foods:
fruit.
Predation
Large carnivores such as lynx, bobcats, and coyotes may prey on gray foxes, but it has not actually been documented that this is the case. (Kurta, 1995)
Ecosystem Roles
Gray foxes impact their ecosystem as consumers of many different species of prey.
Economic Importance for Humans: Negative
Gray foxes will occasionally eat poultry and game birds, but they are not a serious threat to either.
Economic Importance for Humans: Positive
Gray foxes are hunted primarily for sport as their pelts are not very valuable. The may help control populations of rodents that are damaging to agriculture or transmit disease.
Ways that people benefit from these animals:
controls pest population.
Conservation Status
IUCN Red List: [link]:
Least Concern.
US Federal List: [link]:
No special status.
CITES: [link]:
No special status.
State of Michigan List: [link]:
No special status.
This species is currently not of any special conservation concern.
Contributors
Allison Poor (editor), University of Michigan.
Sharon Jansa 
(author), University of Minnesota.
