On Academia

 https://independent.academia.edu/TerryHooper

Are Irish Foxes A Sub-Spies -And Where Are The Taxidermies?

 

We know that foxhunting was still an elite 'sport' in the early 19th century. In fact, from the late 1830s -into the 1840s there was criticism that as starvation spread through Ireland the sport continued as though nothing was happening.  That should come as no surprise since the English treated the Irish and Welsh as "sub-humans".  Poor people were dying but what had that to do with society's 'sport'?

The Field - Saturday 08 January 1898 reports on fox hunting in Meath and surrounding area and the foxes do not seem to be in the numbers of former years.  An island species relentlessly hunted along with cubbing in which young foxes are thrown to hounds so they "get the taste" and no restraint on killing pregnant vixens means that a population soon drops in numbers. Dullards, however, still see "foxes in abundance!"

As detailed in The Red Paper 2022 Canids the shortage of foxes in Ireland became a problem and as "gifts" English Masters of Fox Hounds sent gifts of Mountain foxes (the largest of the three Old fox types) to Irish MFHs. However, it is unclear whether the shortage of 'sport' was due to foxes in Irelands wet and cold climate were wiped out in the most accessible areas but still continued in more remote areas.  Certainly there were still Mountain foxes captured in rugged areas and transported to hunt areas.

We also know that foxes in Ireland were surviving somewhat better than their English counterparts. In the early 20th century questions were asked in the British Parliament after English hunts committed outrages -having people "steal" foxes from Ireland and brought to England.  This is all detailed in the book and I no longer give out free research so if you want the details...buy the book!

The above photograph from Eire shows a fox with a lot of Old fox traits and I have detailed those here:

Examining An Old Fox and New Fox

https://foxwildcatwolverineproject.blogspot.com/2025/09/examining-old-fox-and-new-fox.html

With t6he submergence of Doggerland 8-10 thousand years ago, mainland Britain was separated from mainland Europe and its wildlife became unique island species.  When the water levels rose again Britain and Ireland were separated by the Irish Sea.  This means that species trapped there had to adapt and become another unique Irish population. I commented on that here:

Old Irish, British and European Foxes -a few words

https://foxwildcatwolverineproject.blogspot.com/2025/04/old-irish-british-and-european-foxes.html

Naturalists have noted that "Irish foxes don';t quite look the same as those from England. No big surprise. In fact, while looking into the "Achill Island Wolves" often referred to by Cryptozoologists (who have yet to understand or undertake "research work") I found foxes there. Achill is a small island on Ireland's south coast  so how did they get there?  Again, this was discussed in The Red Paper. What this means is that the Achill foxes are another unique island species -although I can find no one on the island or elsewhere willing to discuss them.

There was an interesting article on the number of foxes in Ireland which I looked at here:

Does Ireland Have A Thriving Fox Population -and why?

https://foxwildcatwolverineproject.blogspot.com/2024/10/does-ireland-have-thriving-fox.html

I do not believe that Ireland -Northern or Republic- has a "thriving population" and the vague numbers seem to come from the "usual sources": those who are pro hunt and over exaggerate fox numbers to justify their killing sprees (it is NOT "control" in any way shape or form because if you wanted to control such a population why is the history of the UK and Ireland full of well documented public news items and book references to importing more "for sport"?

The other big source for these figures are pest control companies for who call outs to "deal with foxes" are big money. Their 'knowledge' of the animals (that they brag about) is often incorrect and full of pro hunt jargon disguised as "expert opinion".

Evidence would seem to support the fact that the situation in Northern Ireland and Eire is similar to the mainland UK: urban foxes (with the usual death rates by car and rodenticide) and a dwindling (over exaggerated) population in the countryside.

I have had little success in finding remains of genuine Irish wolves that could one day be DNA studied but I would expect there to be a number of taxidermy examples of foxes killed across the island pre 1860. It is just finding people who have them and are willing to communicate!

I proved, based on contemporary accounts,  back in 2000 that there were wild cats in Ireland. The Red Paper 2022 Felids provided the physical evidence of their existence -something archaeology is now proving.  I hope that in 2026 I can at least succeed in finding evidence of Old foxes in Ireland.

But then there is the question of who will pay for DNA testing?

This is why I Cannot Support Reintroduction of any species

 

Police investigate after white-tailed eagles go missing across UK

Conservationists appeal to public for help after rare birds disappear in suspicious circumstances

 https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2025/dec/17/police-investigate-after-white-tailed-eagles-go-missing-across-uk

Helena Horton and Patrick Barkham

Wed 17 Dec 2025 11.12 GMT

 

One of the first white-tailed eagles to fledge in England for hundreds of years has vanished in suspicious circumstances, alongside two more “devastating” disappearances of the reintroduced raptor.

Police are appealing for public help as they investigate the disappearances, which are a setback to the bird’s successful reintroduction. Their disappearance is being investigated by several police forces and the National Wildlife Crime Unit.

The RSPB is offering a £10,000 reward for information leading to a conviction. Dr James Robinson, RSPB chief operating officer, said: “The RSPB is shocked with this news, so much so that we are offering an overall reward of £10,000 for information that leads to a conviction in these cases. Eagle tag-data is so precise that the point of death and any subsequent movement of the tag will be known to investigators, so we urge the public to come forward with information. Raptor persecution has no place in modern society, let alone threatening such an important UK government-backed reintroduction scheme like this.”

The eagles have gone missing in Sussex, Wales and Scotland. The chick, which hatched in the wild earlier this year in Sussex, was one of the first white-tailed eagles to fledge in England for hundreds of years.

It is thought someone could have harmed or killed the birds, as the satellite trackers that allow the reintroduction team to track their location and movements had been cut off. Two of the eagles had their trackers cut off with a sharp instrument with the equipment found dumped near their last recorded location. In the third case, the tag stopped sending information on 8 November and no sighting of the bird has been recorded since.

White-tailed eagles are Britain’s biggest bird of prey. They were driven to extinction in Britain in the early 20th century, after being shot and poisoned to protect shooting interests.

Conservationist Roy Dennis and his foundation have been working with Forestry England to return the birds to England, and since 2019, 45 white-tailed eagles have been released. Several breeding pairs have formed, with six chicks hatching in the wild for the first time since the 1780s. Because the project is new, with few birds fledged, targeting them in this way puts the eagles’ reintroduction at risk.

The conservationists leading the project are devastated by the news. Tim Mackrill, from the Roy Dennis Wildlife Foundation, said: “We monitor the satellite data, showing the bird’s minute-by-minute movements, on a daily basis and always investigate any suspicious or unusual data. It was devastating to find the stolen and dumped tags, particularly for the chick in Sussex, who fledged this summer and had only just begun its life.

“So many people in the area had shared the joy of seeing these birds breed again after hundreds of years and our ongoing monitoring has shown how well they were fitting into the landscape. To have that destroyed just a few months later is deeply shocking.”

The birds are sometimes killed illegally by those with game interests, because they are thought to predate on birds bred for shooting such as pheasants and partridges, say campaigners. Disturbing the birds or their nests is a criminal offence.

Three police forces are working to solve the mystery of the missing birds. On 26 September, a satellite tag belonging to a fledged eagle chick was recovered from the River Rother, near Petersfield in Hampshire. It had been removed from the bird using a sharp instrument. Sussex police are looking for information from anyone who was in or around Harting Down and Petersfield on the evening of 20 September.

On 13 September, a satellite tag belonging to a white-tailed eagle was recovered near Gwgia Reservoir, Tregynon, and Dyfed Powys police in Wales are asking anyone who was at or around the reservoir between 11am and 1pm or on access land near Bryn y Fawnog between noon and 3pm on 13 September to come forward.

Another eagle’s tag stopped transmitting in the Moorfoot Hills area south of Edinburgh. The last transmission was sent on 8 November and Police Scotland are investigating.

Steve Egerton-Read, the white-tailed eagle project officer for Forestry England, said: “We are returning this lost species to the English landscape and have had so much support from the public. These special birds are helping people connect with natural world and showing how with a little bit of help nature can thrive. We are asking the public to show this support again by encouraging anyone who has information that may help the police investigation to come forward.”

Ruth Tingay, of Raptor Persecution, said: “These reports are so depressingly familiar these days, we’ve pretty much come to expect them. Although there’s something particularly sickening about killing a white-tailed eagle, it’s no less a crime, in the eyes of the law, than killing a more common species like a buzzard or a sparrowhawk.

“There’s no doubt whatsoever that at least two of these eagles were the victims of illegal persecution, given the clear evidence that their satellite tags had been cut off and crude attempts were made to hide them.”

The Final Total Really SHOULD Shock Anyone

 

 Just so that everyone understands the ultimate death toll when given (1st January, 2026).

Very few people report dead animals -even pets seen dead are not reported. The response is still, after a decade of trying to explain: "It's a dead animal who cares?" and "Someone else will report it -my time is far too important to waste". More often the line "Well I see them dead on the road all the time when driving around Bristol"

Which means that the foxes and badgers that are reported -and it is still a case of hearing about most by accident- is not a true number.

Statistically: "It is impossible to provide a single, precise number for the actual estimate, as road death incidents are significantly underreported. However, a figure of 360 reported incidents suggests the actual number could range from approximately 1,000 to over 5,000, or potentially much higher, depending on the species and location. "

Bear that in mind.

The Fox Work, DNA and No Funding

 

 As I have noted before there is only one full time fox researcher (50 years) and only one body  (The British Fox (and Wild Canids) Study f 1976) looking at red foxes in the UK as well as the true history of foxes -looking at the Old foxes that became extinct.

Over the decades the work has cost me thousands but there is no real academic interest in foxes apart from the occasional very narrow scoped short term projects.   Basically, it is a lonely business that has very few collaborators.

Threats? Oh, those are standard if you are involved in wildlife work. When I was a UK police forces exotic wildlife consultant I got all kinds of threats. In recent years, due to the fox work, I have opened the front door to find a short hangman's noose on the door step (I still have that if the sender wants it back) . A decapitated pigeon and even decapitated rat.  The official problems from doing this work also mount up.

Over the decades I have applied for UK wildlife grants but was always told (if I insisted on a reason) "Foxes aren't covered". I tried EU grants -but they will not tell you why your application was a failure just who else got the grant. 

DNA work is the next step but whereas at least one UK university will examine material alleged to have come from "big cats" in the countryside, none will even consider DNA testing extinct fox and wild cat types. Which means DNA testing would need to be paid for and that is expensive and you need a lab that can access the data base needed to compare samples. 

Really, all of the archival research and documentation has been carried out so that there is absolutely no doubt that the British Isles had three distinct Old fox variants and with Ireland the same applies. However, if we want to correct the record and push aside over a century of dogma DNA is the final proof.

Sadly, I doubt we will ever see DNA testing.

Is "Re-Introduction" a Good Idea?

  It is a FACT that English, Welsh and Scottish wild cats were hunted to extinction. At a meeting of Scottish zoologists in 1898 one of the speakers was a man who had studied Scottish wild cats for 40 years. He declared that the wild cat had become extinct decades before and the 1860s was decided and agreed upon.

What you see in museums are not wild cats but hybrids of European wild cats. What are being financed and released are nothing more than hybrid European wild cats.

These cats are raised wild before release, but face the same threats such as cars or shooting and trapping on estates. They cannot be guarded 24/7 and you can bet the odd shooter who considers his/herself a 'sports' person is going to be out looking for one. The shooting community long ago share locations of where the releases would take place.

They want to introduce lynx and wolves back to Scotland and while lynx have survived in Scotland and even England in recent times (officially 1920s-1930s) they were all shot. Back in the 1990s an escaped arctic fox was shot by a farmer because "it looked unusual". Same decade in Shropshire a moron farmer shot an escaped ring tailed lemur because "it was an unusual animal"

There are far too many people in the UK who love to go out with rifles (often in groups) to shoot whatever they can find for 'fun' and they could not care less that the fox population has dropped by 60% -the old hunts had the same view: "We MUST have our sport".

The law states that a fox can be "dealt with" if a threat to livestock. Foxes in urban areas hunting rats and similar are no threat but who cares? We do know that in some areas off duty police officers take part in the 'sport' when they should be stopping it as unnecessary killing of wildlife (not to mention pets and the occasional live stock).

As I have gotten older so my stance has changed. The UK is not an animal loving set of countries and government legislation as well as local authorities do all they can to allow developers to destroy habitat while not caring about the mass of wildlife shot or killed by cars.

I would NEVER support the introduction of any species to replace one humans have made extinct. History has shown those species would only be targeted again.

Extinction is forever

There Is Only ONE UK Fox Study Started in 1976

 

Yes, I run the British Fox and Wild Canids Study (f 1976) and it is the only organisation in the UK working permanently on (specifically) Fox history, welfare and conservation.

I run and do most of the workj with occasional research volunteers. Why not more people involved?

There is absolutely no funding for such a study in the UK where species, even supposedly protected ones, are considered expendable and an annoyance to developers.

I bankrupted myself carrying out this work but what has been learnt was forgotten. Lost. I would very much like to do more such as DNA testing on Old Fox and Old wild cat species -those hunting drive into extinction in the mid 18th century- but no funding makes this difficult.

Do others with an interest in fox species (in other countries) find no real interest?

Ja, ich leite die British Fox and Wild Canids Study (gegr. 1976), die einzige Organisation in Großbritannien, die sich dauerhaft mit der Geschichte, dem Wohlergehen und dem Schutz von Füchsen befasst.

Ich leite die Studie und erledige den Großteil der Arbeit, gelegentlich unterstützt von ehrenamtlichen Forschern. Warum engagieren sich nicht mehr Menschen?

In Großbritannien gibt es keinerlei Fördermittel für solche Studien. Arten, selbst vermeintlich geschützte, gelten dort als entbehrlich und als Ärgernis für Bauherren.

Ich habe mich durch diese Arbeit ruiniert, doch die gewonnenen Erkenntnisse sind in Vergessenheit geraten. Verloren. Ich würde sehr gerne weitere Studien durchführen, beispielsweise DNA-Tests an alten Fuchs- und Wildkatzenarten – jenen, die Mitte des 18. Jahrhunderts durch die Jagd ausgerottet wurden –, aber die fehlende Finanzierung macht dies unmöglich.

Finden andere, die sich für Fuchsarten interessieren (in anderen Ländern), ebenfalls wenig Unterstützung?

Oui, je dirige l'Étude britannique sur le renard et les canidés sauvages (fondée en 1976), la seule organisation au Royaume-Uni qui travaille en permanence sur l'histoire, le bien-être et la conservation du renard.

Je dirige l'organisation et effectue la majeure partie du travail, avec l'aide ponctuelle de bénévoles chercheurs. Pourquoi ne pas impliquer davantage de personnes ?

Au Royaume-Uni, ce type d'étude ne bénéficie d'aucun financement. Les espèces, même celles censées être protégées, y sont considérées comme superflues et gênantes pour les promoteurs immobiliers.

J'ai ruiné ce travail, et les connaissances acquises ont été oubliées. Perdues. J'aimerais beaucoup approfondir la question, notamment en réalisant des tests ADN sur les anciennes espèces de renards et de chats sauvages – celles qui ont disparu à cause de la chasse au milieu du XVIIIe siècle – mais l'absence de financement rend cela difficile.

D'autres personnes s'intéressant aux espèces de renards (dans d'autres pays) ne constatent-elles aucun intérêt réel ?

Large Cats Killing Sheep Is Far From A Modern Occurrence.

  

For my research work -whether canids or felids- I have read hundreds of newspaper archive reports and I have the eye strain to prove it.  During my work as a consultant to UK police forces (1977-2018) or even working with farmers groups I was always able to tell a sheep that was victim of a dog attack. Canids attack a certain way and are messy and when more than one dog is involved they are noisy. 

I never once heard "it was a pack of dogs killed it and only 100 yards from the house!" and believed it. The sheep never made a distress noise? The excited dogs never yapped or barked and all within 100 yards of a house in which sat four people having coffee with the kitchen door open as it was a warm night?

A point needs to be made that farmers know they are not going to get any insurance money for a dead sheep if they say "It was killed by a panther/puma". They may have seen the cat around and I know at least two insurance agents as well as members of the National Farmers Union who have sighted a large cat on a property. The kill may be very cat-like BUT who are you going to call in to prove it? How much will it cost? And as insurers do not recognise "big cat attack" as being covered by a policy a farmer would lose out.  One farmer told me in the 1990s that his insurance agent knew it was a large cat that attacked and killed and then consumed some of it but he gave the farmer a knowing wink and completed the insurance paperwork: "Yes, definitely a sheep savaged and killed by a dog, right?" Was that true? I eventually learnt that it was and that it happened in other parts of the country -it was 'dog attack' and get compensation or insist it was a big cat and get none.

One farmer in the 1990s (in Wales) had a flock of "common old sheep" but had also invested in a flock of expensive (apologies if I get this wrong as sheep are not my speciality -and a Google search had AI respond that it was an outdated racist practice!) black faced sheep (Surrey?). It was always the expensive black-faced sheep the puma took and he knew that he would get no compensation.

People calling themselves 'experts' (after 50 years I would not even call myself an expert!) will tell everyone that a cat (leopard or puma) will simply select a sheep and kill it. Anything involving more than one dead sheep would be dogs or "some mystery animal".  Large cats can and do kill more than they can eat -possibly due to starvation/lack of wild prey (instinct is to kill and have a cache of food for later). China TV on 16th  February, 2017 showed footage of a snow leopard that entered a sheep pen and killed  38 sheep and days later another killed 13 goats. Leopards and even puma have been known to do likewise.

For these reasons every report is read to ascertain whether how sheep were killed is mentioned. Faces bitten, torn and so on is usually a good indicator of a canid -a fox is a domestic cat sized animal and despite what hunts want you to believe they do not take down sheep.

If you look at this report  out of 900 sheep 15 were killed or injured out and "what looked like a large black 'dog'" was sighted and shot at -there was a similar event of sheep killed by a mystery "black animal" at Edale in Derbyshire in the 1920s. The method of kill etc was typical of a leopard (Red Paper 2022 Vol. II: Felidae) .  This is from Mearns Leader - Friday 02 August 1946

Interesting in that there are parallels with Bodmin in the 1980s in this article from the  Lincolnshire Standard and Boston Guardian - Saturday 17 August 1912. One of the Royal Marines dug in watching a field of sheep told me he and his pal had a boring night but after dawn when they stood up and turned around some hundred yards away was a sheep that had been killed and partly eaten. They had heard nothing.

The "shoulder and the throat have been "pulled out" which almost sounds like a leopard Leicester Evening Mail - Monday 05 February 1934

Sadly, it is far too long ago to look for new details -or any witnesses!  No report of a post mortem examination (it should be noted that few farmers can afford to pay for PMEs and that official PM services will not touch any such animals and when they do "it is always dog" (the veterinary pathologist added: "it may have all the hall marks of a cat kill and a large cat may have been seen but it is still a dog attack!").

The below photo shows the throat wound and how the shoulder of this sheep (in Africa) has been ripped completely away.  I knew two zoologists who wanted to see whether they (combined) could rip off a sheep's leg. They found that even after they "partially butchered" it they could not tear the leg off).

As for where these cats might come from; looking at a map it is quite clear that a lot of historical/modern cat territories are centred in old hunting territory or near to stately homes. We also know that a lot of hunt masters released (it is on the public record) jackals, wolves and coyotes to hunt in England and Wales. In fact, in the mid 1800s one Devon Hunt Master had to stop the release of a wolf to hunt after local protest -whether the wolf was released anyway we have no idea. "Local dignitaries" had a great deal covered up by fawning newspaper editors. 

We also know that anyone who wanted to could keep an exotic pet and this went on for hundreds of years until the Dangerous Wild Animals Act 1976 (the false "mass release" date for exotics so often quoted by people who have no idea).  There were private menageries in back gardens, private estates and even the odd railway station. In the Red Paper 2022: Felidae and the self contained Red Paper 2025 Wild Menagerie -Britain's New Native Species I include a report from a magazine in the 1920s that I came across quite by accident on a Surrey Puma escape.

Hunts or estate menagerie/exotic pet escapes -a lot of choice and when you consider how common escapes of animals including wolves, gorillas, kangaroos et al were from travelling menageries and even how such animals simply vanished as the travelling shows closed down there is even more choice!

It's The Wolf...or The Jackal...or...

 

This first report is interesting. If you have read The Red Paper 2022: Canidae then you would have read of the well documented cases of wolves being encountered in the early 20th century. A "very large white animal" seen bounding off is nothing new and we have documented wolf cases from Wales, the North of England and even some areas of SE England.

The form of attack is consistent with a canid.

North Wales Weekly News - Thursday 13 January 1949

*********************************************

Here is another seeming canid attacking sheep and during the early 1900s there were a number of well documented jackal cases -for which there is photographic record.

Illustrated Police Budget - Saturday 30 December 1905 Note how they dismiss one of the well documented 1904 jackal cases as "a dog". At times the Press almost act like they were covering up in local areas -wonder for whom?

We know, because it is well documented, that hunts had members trying to breed the "perfect" hunt canid. Attempts to cross jackals with foxes, jackals with wolves and wolf-coyote/wolf-jackal. It was all about getting an animal with the stamina for a long chase as well as one that would "put up a good show at the end" (fight back when cornered by hounds).

Escapes from travelling menageries and even private (static) menageries were not unusual. Big estates had their private collections. Animals getting too large and wild to keep were very likely dumped. Again, hunts released jackals and even set up dens for wolves to provide "better sport" -all fully documented.

The one thing that I have learnt from the work between 1976 to date is that for centuries wild canids (of various types) as well as large cats have lived and bred in the British countryside and the fascinating thing is that even when perfectly describing a black leopard the witness and others report it as a "Hell"/"Devil" hound of local lore-in one case it 'was' the spirit that escaped from a coffin that was dropped head first -hence the spirit escaping and being seen as a 'black hound'!

Equally fascinating is that none of these animals has had a negative impact on "native" wildlife and there have certainly never been any attacks on humans in the wild.

Bristol Otter Pup Rescued

 

Full story here  https://www.itv.com/news/westcountry/2025-12-03/lone-otter-cub-rescued-from-beside-the-bristol-canal?fbclid=IwY2xjawOdQ45leHRuA2FlbQIxMABzcnRjBmFwcF9pZBAyMjIwMzkxNzg4MjAwODkyAAEeD-b_U9mfgmJJuoouIPDOTs-jzLz444AiVBFfClZxzEecljvz1J4k8VX6IU8_aem_2DJIeFWs23n-5iQ3geFdxw

I was asked but suggested Otter Trust as Bristol Otter Group I do not think exist any more -certainly ignored a request to put in some comments re building on the outskirts of Bristol where we know otters are.

A vulnerable otter cub found alone by a Bristol canal has been saved by an animal charity.

A local barge owner had heard her repeated crying and found the female cub by the water’s edge with no sign of its mother. 

The UK Wild Otter Trust say she was cold, underweight and distressed when they arrived at the Bristol Feeder Canal. 

She has been named Avon and is thought to be 6-7 weeks old. 

Eurasian otter cubs typically remain with their mothers for a year. 

Dave Webb, founder of the trust, said her chances of survival alone would have been very slim: “Avon was extremely vulnerable when she reached us. 

“At her age, otter cubs depend entirely on their mothers for warmth and feeding, so being alone on the canal bank was life-threatening. 

“Thankfully, she’s already feeding well and showing signs of strength.

“It’s always heartbreaking when a cub becomes separated this young, but the progress Avon is making is wonderful to see. 

“She’ll stay with us until she’s grown and fully ready for release back into the wild.”