Fox Talk at National Wildlife Refuge
Fox Talk at National Wildlife Refuge
On Saturday D. and I went to the National Wildlife Refuge in Fremont to hear a talk about the gray fox (Urocyon cinereoargenteus) given by "The Fox Guy" naturalist Bill Leikam. Gray foxes are highly successful survivors and are adapting to living closer to urban environments. We learned about the typical annual lifecycle of the gray fox and what makes them different from all other foxes (they can climb trees!). We observed their habitat during a short walk in the refuge and got followed by a videographer filming Bill's presentation. Here's some of the pics I took.
You are here.
A life-size turkey vulture silhouette on the side of the headquarters.
Inside the headquarters is a snowy egret display.
Power lines outside the headquarters. Because it isn't a field trip without power lines.
Toyon berries, dried and fresh.
California poppy, bobbing in the breeze.
The boardwalk in the LaRiviere Marsh part of the refuge.
Sage and ceanothus flowers.
Naturalist Bill and videographer Whatshisname (sorry).
Fox paw prints in the sidewalk, made by a fox trotting through the still-wet cement when the sidewalk was laid down.
The fuzzy part of the large pad was caused by the furred part of the fox's paw.
Someone dumped their family pet in the refuge.
I'd like to find that person and give them a piece of my mind.
Bill shows us some fox scat on the trail. Foxes are omnivorous, so they eat anything and everything from berries to small animals and birds.
We see a trail on a hillside in the refuge used by wildlife, including foxes.
Typical fox habitat, full of brush to hide in.
Foxes are crepuscular, meaning they are most active during dusk and dawn. But foxes can be seen at any time of day. I saw a gray fox a couple of years ago, and it was in the middle of the afternoon near an open space preserve across the bay from here.
Something has made a meal of this snail. Perhaps it was a fox?
.
On Saturday D. and I went to the National Wildlife Refuge in Fremont to hear a talk about the gray fox (Urocyon cinereoargenteus) given by "The Fox Guy" naturalist Bill Leikam. Gray foxes are highly successful survivors and are adapting to living closer to urban environments. We learned about the typical annual lifecycle of the gray fox and what makes them different from all other foxes (they can climb trees!). We observed their habitat during a short walk in the refuge and got followed by a videographer filming Bill's presentation. Here's some of the pics I took.
You are here.
A life-size turkey vulture silhouette on the side of the headquarters.
Inside the headquarters is a snowy egret display.
Power lines outside the headquarters. Because it isn't a field trip without power lines.
Toyon berries, dried and fresh.
California poppy, bobbing in the breeze.
The boardwalk in the LaRiviere Marsh part of the refuge.
Sage and ceanothus flowers.
Naturalist Bill and videographer Whatshisname (sorry).
Fox paw prints in the sidewalk, made by a fox trotting through the still-wet cement when the sidewalk was laid down.
The fuzzy part of the large pad was caused by the furred part of the fox's paw.
Someone dumped their family pet in the refuge.
I'd like to find that person and give them a piece of my mind.
Bill shows us some fox scat on the trail. Foxes are omnivorous, so they eat anything and everything from berries to small animals and birds.
We see a trail on a hillside in the refuge used by wildlife, including foxes.
Typical fox habitat, full of brush to hide in.
Foxes are crepuscular, meaning they are most active during dusk and dawn. But foxes can be seen at any time of day. I saw a gray fox a couple of years ago, and it was in the middle of the afternoon near an open space preserve across the bay from here.
Something has made a meal of this snail. Perhaps it was a fox?
.