Red fox

The cunning hero of fairy tales

The red fox lives all over Uzbekistan — in the steppe, in the mountains and even on the edges of cities. It's very clever: it hears a mouse under the snow and leaps high to pounce on it! A fox's tail is very fluffy — in the cold it wraps its nose in it. Foxes are in the dog family, but they hunt like cats.

The red fox (Vulpes vulpes) is the most widespread carnivore in the world: from the Arctic to North Africa, from Japan to Australia (where humans introduced it). In Uzbekistan it lives in every region. It is thought to use Earth's magnetic field when hunting: pounces aimed north-east succeed three times as often. Diet: rodents (80%), insects, fruit. Highly adaptable — it lives even in London and Tokyo. Cubs (4–6) are born in a den. It makes 40 different sounds. In Uzbek folk tales it is the symbol of cunning — remember 'The Fox and the Wolf'.

Fun facts

• A fox finds a mouse under snow with a 'compass' — using Earth's magnetic field!
• A fox makes 40 different sounds; some sound like a human scream.
• The fox is the most widespread carnivore in the world — on 6 continents.