Big Fox

[treefrog]

I don't know what they're feeding them on north of the border, but thats one big fox.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-north-east-orkney-shetland-17259087

 

[sxmolloy]

Wow that's huge!

 

[marcusleftthesite]

Shot one the same size if not a little bigger back in the late 70's.Skinned it and there was'nt a pellet in him,can only think it had a heart attack.

 

[Bushwhacker]

That's one mahoosive Charlie.

 

[tinderbox]

Red foxes in the Scottish Highlands do tend to be significantly bigger, with thicker coats and bushier tails than elsewhere in Britain. No one seems to know why. Still a very big fox though, but definitely not an urban fox as the expert from the GWCT seems to think.

 

[.XII.]

recent article in Sporting Shooter magazine reported a similar sized specimen, and gave one possible reason for increasing size being the decline in professional estate wardens / games-keepers (who were only ever really interested in confirming the kill) and the corresponding rise in pest-control being done by sporting shooters (who are more likely to record & share the size etc) - seems pretty plausible to me, as i know most of my local farmers would just sling it in a hedge and the only people who would hear of the 'monster fox' would be the usual crowd at the local pub...

 

[santaman2000]

recent article in Sporting Shooter magazine reported a similar sized specimen, and gave one possible reason for increasing size being the decline in professional estate wardens / games-keepers (who were only ever really interested in confirming the kill) and the corresponding rise in pest-control being done by sporting shooters (who are more likely to record & share the size etc) - seems pretty plausible to me, as i know most of my local farmers would just sling it in a hedge...

Seems ironic. The following is copied from a CTV news article:
"The Northwest Territories government is hoping record prices for fox fur pelts will encourage northern trappers to target the critters and keep a check on the burgeoning population.The price doubled at a recent auction in North Bay, Ont., with cross fox pelts going for $100, more than triple the average price. White fox pelts went for $200 — up from $40 in previous years....'We really hope the prices will get people targeting foxes,' Rossouw said. 'Every community in the North has their own resident fox it seems. Instead of having problem wildlife, we would prefer to have them harvest the foxes humanely and pelt them up properly and put them into the market'...”

 

[spandit]

definitely not an urban fox

Why not? Aren't they the same species?

 

[tinderbox]

Why not? Aren't they the same species?

You might want to check where Rothiemay is.

 

[blacktimberwolf]

You might want to check where Rothiemay is.

Have legs, will travel..................

 

[blacktimberwolf]

He added: "I'm 5ft 7in, and it was 4ft 9in. When I held it up, it was almost the same size as me."........I'm 6 ft. tall & my wife is 5ft 3ins.....when I hold her up she's almost the same size as me.

Yep that's one big fox, male or female ?.


I don't think foxes are getting bigger as such but there are large individuals in all species & we only get to hear about them when they've been killed & make the news. ..........this dude could have probably seen off a fox terrier or 2...

 

[wildranger]

Red foxes in the Scottish Highlands do tend to be significantly bigger, with thicker coats and bushier tails than elsewhere in Britain. No one seems to know why. Still a very big fox though, but definitely not an urban fox as the expert from the GWCT seems to think.

Maybe it's the same reason that animals in the northern forests are so large and have such thick fur coats? Perhaps the foxes have these characteristics to adapt them to the fierce cold in the scottish highlands -their larger size means a lower surface area to body mass ratio, so their body temperature does not drop as rapidly as smaller foxes' body temperature would, when exposed to the same cold weather..