More Historical Evidence For An Old West European Old Fox?

  The full story behind these images -What Does the Fox Sing? on The Newberry Blog here:

https://www.newberry.org/blog/what-does-the-fox-sing?fbclid=IwY2xjawIApWBleHRuA2FlbQIxMAABHWWgAZ_Nhy8v0pgJbspLYdRBMX_Z4z3bPi5awQROuSMPubhkf6duxF21mw_aem_SZ6_OZ76wolkzNuNHk648w

The prints were made in 1490 and the colour work was done in 1517 so the artist doing that colouring would have been familiar with the colour of a fox. This is no modern or late 20th century colouring where the artist decides every fox in history in the UK was red so that's how it will be coloured.

The Vincenzo Capirola, Lutebook, 1517, Newberry Library. VAULT Case MS minus VM 140 .C25 has added one more piece to the puzzle of whether Western Europe, before human migration and red fox symbiotic following of human settlements, had an Old fox type similar to the UK.

It would make logical sense that it did since the foxes trapped in the UK after Doggerland flooded would have been part of a Western European species.  When Ireland was then separated itself from mainland Britain the Old foxes there would have developed to live in the new habitat.

What struck me immediately about the drawings was how close they were to sketches of Old British foxes down to the rough hair as well as the famous Colquhoun mountain fox (one of the last of its type).

19th century sketch of a mountain fox and below the Colquhoun mountain fox killed in the mid 1830 (full details and better photos in The Red Paper)

Access to European museum or private house collections (as we had hoped for in the UK)  would likely turn up even more anecdotal evidence and, perhaps, a taxidermy of an Old W. European fox.

Dog Walkers and Wildlife

  There seems to be an enormous feeling of self entitlement amongst some dog owners and I have in the past heard every excuse as well as being blasted with a dog's "bill of rights" (seriously). If you cannot command control your dog in a park or area where there is wildlife and especially during cub and young season -muzzle it or keep it on a lead. 

This is not a Bristol problem it is a national one. Deer,foxes, badgers and other wildlife are chased at by out of control dogs while the owners chuckle away. It is not funny.

We also have some nasty people out there who seem to have great fun allowing their dogs to attack and kill wildlife.

Purdown and Blaise Castle (Bristol) have seen reports of dogs chasing rabbits and deer and not responding to their owners' calls.

Yesterday afternoon, at Blaise Castle Park, a dog walker and her husband were shocked as a "Very large and muscle packed" greyhound attacked and shook, mauled a fox. The owner watched and did nothing and after the dog had done its stuff he left. The shocked couple had to wait until Sarah Mills (the Bristol Fox Lady) got there and rushed the fox to the vet where in juries were so severe it was put down.

This has now become a wildlife crime incident and there will be a post mortem carried out and report forwarded to Bristol City Council and police.

The man was described as early 50s, well built and his greyhound was more powerfully built than the usual greyhounds seen. No leash and no muzzle and no attempt to do anything means the dog is a danger to (at least) wildlife and by the man's reaction this was nothing new -why someone would take a greyhound into an area with wildlife and let it chase and kill animals is open to question.

Dog walkers should be careful if they are in the park in case the man and dog return. If anyone has suspicions who the person i9s please contact Avon and Somerset Police.

Above: the fox savaged and that had to be euthanised

Total recorded Fox Deaths Bristol 2022-2025 (January)

 It was initially a struggle to get local wildlife group members to report observations of dead foxes (or badgers). It still is. Pet walkers and Pets Lost and Found groups have been a great help. In 2025 we are finally seeing more members of the public reporting sick and dead foxes.

 It is always important to note that these are only reported dead foxes and anecdotal evidence has shown many foxes are never reported.

In 2022 there were 50 dead foxes reported. Very low but, as noted, it was a struggle to get cooperation.

In 2023 there were a total of 263 reported dead foxes.

For 2024 the total was 265.

Ominously, up to 20th January 2025 some 27 foxes are listed.

This means that the total known fox deaths for Bristol stands at...

605

Statistically, the final figures for 2023 and 2024 could be at least doubled and the deaths are bound to affect the already declining fox population. 

As of 2025 we are attempting to identify sex and rough age of each fox reported where we can and 2024 has already shown that we lose a lot of cubs as well as vixens which is not good.

The Scottish Wild Cat IS Extinct (that is an over 100 year old news headline)

 

It appears that no one reads the old pre-20th century literature or books published shortly thereafter pertaining to wildlife. Although all the information is there and freely available it seems that dogma laid out in the early 20th century (in fact many museums were displaying hybrid cats as genuine wild cats and criticised for doing so in the late 19th century) has simply been "copy and pasted" by generations.

This lack o0f knowledge means that there is a false history of British wildlife. Deer, hares, red squirrels and many other animals were imported from Europe (more intensely in the 19th century) to replace 'hunting stock' which, if those carrying out DNA work are unaware of means that false results are presented.  Any wild animal in the UK tested would produced European origin DNA because that is where their ancestors originated.  Much more intense DNA work is required to find non-European DNA in British wildlife.

But now back to wild cats. According to the Wildlife Conservation Research Unit, based in Oxfordshire:

"Scottish wildcat hybrids challenge classic assumptions of generalist and specialist species, occurring across a broad range of ecological conditions and geographical ranges, but also having highly specialised individuals.

The study, published by WildCRU and NatureScot researchers, is the latest update to ongoing wildcat research in Scotland. The current project focusses on the threat of hybridisation between wildcats and introduced domestic cats on wildcat populations across Europe, and will be used to inform ongoing efforts to restore the wildcat to Scotland.

Read the latest research http://bit.ly/40FgGlV

Researchers: Samuel Cushman, Zaneta Kaszta, Ruairidh Campbell, Kerry Kilshaw, Martin Gaywood and David Macdonald."

My response, which will probably be ignored again:

"Too late. Even in the 18th century noted naturalists wrote that the wild cat would have become "extinct hundreds of years ago had it not been for breeding with feral domestic cats". In Europe the interbreeding with feral domestics goes to well before the Roman period and in the UK it is stated that ferals have been interbreeding with wild cats since Roman times at least.

"Some of the larger wild cats (hunted by dogs with spiked leather collars to avoid the dog being killed) persisted until, perhaps, the late 18th century. In 1897 a learned gathering of naturalists in Scotland declared that the "Scottish wild cat had become extinct around the 1830s" as this was attested to by a naturalist who had studied the animals for 40 years.

"When I set up t6he Wild Cats and Ferals Study in 1980 I also fell for the dogma that still insists the current very hybridised European wild cat tabbies promoted as true Scottish wild cats were just that. The Red Paper 2022: "Felids" presented the evidence as well as taxidermy showing what the last vestiges of the old wild cat truly looked like."

2024 Fox and Badger Road Death Total (Bristol) Plus Treatment Successes

 

The total number of badgers reported dead due to suspected car strike in Bristol during 2024 stands at 68.

The total number of foxes reported dead, injured and died, etc. in the City of Bristol stands at 268.

These were the ones reported and in a number of cases we would not have known about the deaths other than third parties casually mentioning seeing these animals as having been reported dead (which we then had to confirm) or people complaining that they wanted a dead fox moved as they were "filthy" or "a nuisance".

Based on the usual standards for estimating such things we believe that the actual fox death figure stands at over 300.  For the badgers we estimate a true figure would be more like 100. It seems that the public as well as members of local wildlife groups have no interest in badgers, foxes, otters or deer fatalities in and around the City but we ARE very grateful for those who do forward information.  Oddly, pet and vegan group members are the best reportees.

Since the 31st of December we have had one dead fox reported each day with the 5th being the exception.

After five years of constantly reporting/posting on groups in the City and around it we are still not getting through to those members of wildlife groups and other than photo opportunities badgers and foxes appear to be barely of interest or tolerated.

In the past two years Sarah Mills, "The Bristol Fox Lady" has led the way in treating facial and other injuries as well as mange in foxes in situ without the need to trap and confine.  Just how successful this work is can be seen in the fact that well over 500 foxes have been treated and survived and even vets are beginning to be more open to helping out -sadly not all vets as there is still an attitude of "We won't touch wildlife" even when a seriously injured animal needs to be put out of its suffering.  It is nice when you hear vets and others mentioning that they see fewer cases of mange and that is down to Sarah's all weather work.

The success of in situ treatment is a glimmer of hope in an otherwise depressing year of recording constant wildlife death on the roads where speeding still contributes to the death toll.