Handbook of Nature-Study · Lesson LXII · Topic 7: Wild mammals: bat, skunk, raccoon and fox
62. The fox
Goal: Your child can tell a fox track from a dog track, describe the red fox, and tell some of the ways it outwits dogs and people.
You'll need
- Fresh snow (best) or soft mud
- The book's photographs and drawings of foxes and their tracks
- A ruler
- Binoculars (optional)
- A nature notebook and a pencil (colored pencils if you have them)
What's in the book
Before the fox comes an unnumbered section on the wolf, which Comstock says should be studied first, mostly through stories and reading. Then her story of the red fox (its track in the snow, its den and cubs, its food and its tricks) and Lesson LXII with its leading thought, method and seven questions.
The lesson, step by step
When and where
Winter, the morning after a fresh snow, is the best time: Comstock says the lesson "may well be given when there are fox tracks for observation." Look along field edges, fence lines and woodland paths. In spring, foxes raise their cubs in dens; if you know of one, watch only from far away with binoculars.
Safety first
Safety first: never touch, feed or try to catch a wild mammal, even one that looks tame, sleepy or hurt. Bats, skunks, raccoons and foxes can carry rabies. If one acts strangely, or is out in daylight acting sick, move away and tell an adult, who can call the local animal control or wildlife office.
Never go close to a den.
Keep the big idea in mind
Comstock's "leading thought" is the one idea the lesson is meant to lead to. Read it to yourself now, and save it to share at the end, after your child has looked and answered:
The red fox is so clever that it has been able, in many parts of our country, to maintain itself despite dogs and men.
Fox track or dog track?
Follow a line of tracks in the snow.
Describe the fox's track. How does it differ from the track of a small dog?
Comstock's story helps: when the fox lopes along, three of its prints fall in a line, one ahead of another, with the fourth a little to one side. She says the fox has longer legs than most dogs of its weight. If a dog has walked nearby, compare the two lines and measure a print of each.
What does a fox look like?
Look at the photographs in the book.
Describe the red fox, its color and form as completely as you can. What is the expression of its face? What is there peculiar about its tail? What is the use of this great bushy tail in the winter?
Clever fox
Read Comstock's paragraphs on the fox's tricks, or ask a neighbor who has watched foxes, then ask:
When chased by dogs, in what direction does the fox run? Describe all of the tricks which you know by which the fox throws the dog off the scent.
Have you ever heard the fox bark? Did it sound like the bark of a dog?
Fox family
When are the young foxes born? How many in a litter? What color are they? How do they play with each other? How do they learn to hunt?
Then read the leading thought aloud and ask your child what "clever" means for a fox.
Nature notebook
Draw a short line of fox tracks and, beside it, a dog's tracks, so the difference shows. Add a sketch of the fox with its bushy tail curled around it as it sleeps in the snow.
Afterwards
For a reading day, Comstock's wolf section suggests stories such as "Lobo" in Ernest Thompson Seton's Wild Animals I Have Known. Your child can retell the story and say what it shows about how wolves live.