She's back!

I hadn't seen 'our' vixen for so long that I thought she might be dead. She must be at least four, as she has produced three sets of cubs that we know of, and foxes in the wild often die before they reach the age of four. In fact, in the London area only 3% make it to five years old, although in captivity they can reach fourteen. So I was absolutely delighted when, three days ago, she suddenly appeared in the garden again. Not only that, she must have recently given birth again, as you can see from her teats.

She had two cubs last year, and four the two previous years. I wonder how many she's had this year? With any luck, by the end of April we will have seen them emerging from the den in next door's garden - the very house that I am currently trying to buy. Once I get it, I plan to set up a camera and capture a lot more detail of the foxes' lives.

Here is her mate. He looks really feral, doesn't he? He has a bigger mask than her and the tip of his brush is darker.