Nature is Amazing
Nature is pretty amazing in the way it has evolved over time to weave connections and balance between flora, fauna and ecosystems. Some of these connections are not immediately obvious, and a lot of times we do not even notice them until we disrupt the balance and connections in some way.
The Red Fox
The red fox is one of my favorite animals. I often think of it as the spirit of the forest. When I think of the perfect fairy tale forest I think of tall pine trees and lush undergrowth and ferns with a cunning orange fox trotting right through the middle of it. These smart little creatures are extrememly adaptable and you can find them in many different environments, not just the forest. High in the mountains of Colorado where the winters are harsh, red foxes get through the winter by hunting voles and other burrowing animals. No doubt you’ve seen pictures of red foxes in mid-air in a snowy landscape as they pounce on an unwitting rodent buried underneath the snow. If need be red foxes will migrate when food sources are low to more hospitable areas where food is more plentiful.
Weird Winter
Winter 2023 was a strange year for Colorado and alot of the American West. We recieved record snow fall. In places like the mountains of Colorado it was also alot warmer, so we would go into a cycle of heavy snow, and then the top of the snow melts because it gets warm, top of snow freezes because it gets cold again and then it snows a couple more feet. This cycle continued throughout the winter and because of this it created layers of heavy ice in the snowpack.
Not on Purpose
Early last winter before the snow really piled up, a friend of mine who lives in the mountains inadvertently started feeding a red fox. She would boil a couple of eggs every morning for breakfast and eat only the whites. The yolks would be thrown out in the yard for the birds. She enjoyed watching the scrappy Stellar Jays pick the round egg center out of the snow. One day a red fox discovered this and started coming around every morning for the egg yolk. The snow kept piling up, thick and heavy, and life for the fox got harder. Digging for voles wasn’t an option because days between snows would get warm and layers of snow would melt and then freeze, creating impermeable ice layers in the snow that the fox couldn’t get through to catch mice and voles, it’s usual winter meal. The fox started to look thin and my friend started to surmise that the little fox was relying on this daily morsel of food to continue existing. Had this food source not been so reliable early on the fox would have probably moved on to find food in other places.
Unfortunate Consequences
Towards the end of winter, my friend left on a 3-week vacation to get away from the snow. Unfortunately, the fox couldn’t do this too. With my friend gone, this meant no more egg yolks for the fox. When my friend returned, she never saw the fox again. The little fox had died because it was depending on this food source and when it abruptly stopped, the fox was already compromised and unable to move to a lower altitude to find prey. My friend, thinking about the little fox whose life she jeopardized, no longer puts food out for animals. The egg yolks end up in the garbage disposal.
Conclusion
We need to be careful when we interact with the routines of wild animals and understand what behaviors we are modifying when we interact, for example feeding. With the addition of unpredictable weather due to climate change we can unwittingly do more harm than good when feeding animals.
Want to Learn More?
Six Reasons Why Feeding Wild Raccons is a Bad Idea
The Hidden Harm in Feeding Your Local Wildlife