Foxy

Foxes . . gray foxes to be exact. Both these pictures were taken by my "trail" camera, a remote camera that uses a sensor to snap a picture with a flash when it detects movement. They also allow a tracker to gather photographs of the animals who leave tracks on the landscape while the tracker sleeps. It seems that lots of folks in Los Barriles and Southern Baja see these animals on a regular basis because we are in the middle of what biologists call a "gray fox irruption". That means the the habitat is perfect for these animals right now, and that any predator that would reduce or cause the population to move on is not present.

When you think about it, the neighborhoods that have been created in the Los Barriles area are perfect for these animals who can climb anything like a cat, move around in the dusk or night and eat a wide variety of things. Some of the good parts of having them around is a lack of little critters like rats and mice, and they also eat bugs. One of the bad parts is that they eat fruit, nuts and things we like as well.

I have been watching the foxes and their tracks for a couple of months this winter and find that they also must have a sense of humor . . they live right in our yards, our gardens and probably know all about us. They know what time we go to bed, when we get up and what we put in the garbage and who visits whom . . good thing they can't talk eh?

However, if you can learn to see fox tracks among all those of domestic dogs you will be surprised by what they can climb, and how they spend their days in places where they can hear what you say. I wonder if they speak Spanish or English?

Take care and good tracking! Linda