The Grey fox, also known as the Urocyon cinereoargenteus is a threatened mammel that usually is found in the areas of Manitoba and Ontario. 

The Grey fox, a member of the dog family, closely resembles the red fox. Unlike the red fox however, the Grey Fox is found to have a shoter muzzle, shorter legs and overall more rounded footprints. The Grey Fox is called because of its grizzled Grey fur, with the addition of cinnamon colored patches limited to parts of its neck, sides and legs. It also has a black stripe that runs the length of the Grey Fox’s back and up to the tip of the tail. Typically it is found to be around one metres long, and the tail is usually 37 cm long on average.

Habitat:

Grey foxes usually inhabit areas of deciduous forests and marshes in dens, which is made out of various types of substrate such as rock outcrops, hollow trees, underground burrows and piles of brush. These dens are usually located in areas with a dense brush, and are found in close proximity to water sources. Although the Grey Fox tend to prefer these circumstances, it can also be classified as a “habitat” generalist and can be found on the outskirts of cities.

Biology:

The Grey Fox is known to have a varied diet, feeding on whatever is available at that time.  Some typical diets that the Grey Fox will have are animals like rabbits and small rodents, which is usually eaten in the winter and vegetables such as corn, apples, and wild grapes which make up the majority of their food in the summer and fall.

Grey Foxes are extremely active during times of dusk and dawn, and their main predators include Golden Eagles and Coyotes. Grey Foxes become fully mature in their first year, and the young tend to stay within their den for the first 3 months, and will go hunting with their parents when they become 8 months old. The Grey Foxes are also able to climb trees, which is used to rest or flee from predators.

Threats:

The biggest threat for the Grey Fox is hunting and trapping done by humans. In addition, the climate in Canada, such as the harsh winters also pose a risk to the Grey Foxes survival. Diseases, such as canine distemper and rabies are extremely fatal to the foxes and could limit them in an outbreak situation. Although they have predators, they don’t pose as big of a risk as the other factors such as trapping and climate.

Protection – What is being done!

The Grey Fox is protected under the Federal Species at Risk Act (SARA), which makes it illegal to kill, harm, harass, capture or take an individual of a listed species that is extirpated, endangered or threatened. Currently SARA is preparing a recovery strategy to protect the Grey Foxes. But even so, more should be done to protect these magnificent creatures, so some other strategies that can be adopted is to conserve energy. Even if its a little bit, it will still help in not only protecting our environment but many of these animals that depend on good environmental conditions to survive. Another is to report any behavior where trappers are trying to catch these animals.

Part Myth, Mostly Monster

The Chupacabra is said by witnesses to be reptile-like in appearance, with greenish pale skin with scales, red glowing eyes and a pronounced spine running the length of its back. Others say that it more resembles a canine with an elongated head, naked of fur and having long teeth especially of the lower jaw. Witness testimony varies so widely that one might think immediately that there are falsehoods (which is likely, even if unintentionally so) or two entirely different species being described.

Science is hesitant to believe the eye-witness testimony of sighting of this creature and dismiss the killed livestock as the work of other more common predators. Certainly, the chupacabra being featured in an episode of the Sci-Fi/Mystery television series “The X-Files” only makes acknowledging the possible existence of this potentially unrecorded creature all the more difficult to accept.

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It is rather a curious fact that the first reported livestock attacks began only very recently, as recent as March 1995 in Puerto Rico. Here, sheep were killed and each had what appeared to be three puncture wounds in the chest, and all were said to be drained of blood would be a speculative assessment. The body of a chupacabra victim has yet to be examined by a qualified animal biologist and make that determination.

The suddenness of the event suggests something other than a natural predator. If the predator had been localised all along, there should have been some evidence of its existence long before the first reported case began in 1995. Or perhaps, something this is something not native to the island that had emigrated, had either escaped a facility where it was being held and secretly studied, or was intentionally released. There are collectors whom secretly import dangerous wildlife indigenous to other places into ‘private zoos’ or wildlife preserves. These owners would be reluctant to report an escaped, illegally-obtained animal formerly in their possession to authorities.

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 In August of this same year in the Puerto Rico town of Canóvanas, some 150 farm animals and other domestic pets were allegedly killed under unusual circumstances. Drained of blood seems to be the most common attribute of the creatures feeding habit.

This also seems related to reported killings in 1975 in the town of Moco P.R. by what was there called “El Vampire de Moco” (“The Vampire of Moco.”) These animal slayings were at the time thought to be the work of a Satanic cult but as more animal deaths continued to be reported around the island it made this hypothesis this somewhat unlikely. It appears that one or more predators were on the loose.

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The creature seems to also exist in Russia. In 2005 reports started to come in about an animal that kills livestock birds (turkeys, etc) and drains them of blood. Sheep were on the menu as well. Eyewitness reports tell of a ‘canine-like animal’ in the area.

A Chupacabra?

While the most common description of the Chupacabra is that of a reptile-like creature that moves like both a dog and a kangaroo and stands approximately 3 or 4 feet in height (1 – 1.2m) it is often described as more of a hairless dog, gaunt and with pronounced eye-sockets and large teeth. Somehow, the drinking of blood seems too weakand exclusive food source for a creature stated to be size of a coyote, weighing in at around 40-lbs.. Blood has about the same nutritive quality as plain yogurt and while vampire bats do well with a diet of only blood due to their lower metabolism during their respite period in day, it seems unlikely that a dog-sized mammal could sustain itself on such a poor diet exclusively.

Is this creature really something unknown to science or are they just known animals such as coyotes or foxes that are severely malnourished and wholly misidentified by the witnesses who report them? We may soon have another clue as on September 1rst, 2009, a Texas owner of a Taxidermy School has claimed to be in possession of a chupacabra’s body. CNN reported that one of his students poisoned a creature that was killing livestock in and around the family’s farm and brought it to him. The student may have in fact brought down an actual chupacabra. We all are waiting for the results of the findings.