Staying in a flat in Gipsy Hill (SE London), I didn't expect to see an overly exciting display of wildlife, and for the most-part; I was right. I was limited to grey squirrels rummaging amongst the leaf litter on the lawn, a handful of magpies perched in the bare trees in the back garden, a great tit flitting about and a robin preaching from the holly bush at the front. Pleasant, yes, but nothing we haven't seen before.
On my last night in Gipsy Hill, I got up in the middle of the night to get a drink, and while standing at the kitchen sink, I looked out onto the street below. As most of you will not have been to Gipsy Hill before, in the daytime, the street is a bustle of Londoners, buses and cars. At this time however, it was brightly lit by the street-lamps, but silent and empty.
Empty that was, except for one night-time wanderer; an urban fox.
My experience of foxes is limited to the countryside. I have helped lamp foxes on a shooting estate in Norfolk, protecting ground-nesting birds in the area. I have never seen them in an urban environment, and the truth be told, I have never understood the fuss people make about their presence in towns and cities. I am therefore of the view, that yes, in some parts of the countryside, foxes are vermin, and correspondingly, should be controlled.
I read an article in the London Evening Standard last week written by Simon Jenkins (http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/comment/tally-ho-hunt-down-the-capitals-vulpine-menace-7497989.html). He was bemoaning the presence of a vixen and cubs at the bottom of his garden, and ridiculing the suggestions made by the appropriate authority. As far as I could tell his complaints totalled the vixen begging for food at the window (in the bleakest of seasons), an unpleasant odour by the shed, and a small amount of disturbance to the flowerbed. All this at a time when he admitted, he was not present in the garden much at all. Is this really enough to warrant the destruction of a vixen and her cubs? Apparently so, according to Simon Jenkins.
The destruction of foxes in the countryside is for the benefit of ground nesting birds...lapwings, grey partridge, pheasants and grouse. In my view, this is completely justified and understandable. But in the cities? No, I can't comprehend that.
So when I saw the elegant animal trotting up the middle of the road, I cried out (in delight not horror). I clearly startled it as in response, it hunkered down and stared, scouring the house and garden for any signs of life, or danger. Finding none, it turned and slinked off down the gap between two houses, squeezing between the railings as it went. It was clearly in good health, with a deep coat and wonderfully bushy but lightly coloured tail. It may have been a dog fox assessing it's territory under the cover of darkness. I was disappointed to watch him go, remaining at the window for a long while afterwards, hoping he would return. Not this time though.
I was forced to reinforce my earlier views on the matter. These magnificent creatures are living among us, and for the most-part, we are all thriving. I doubt many of the residents of Gipsy Hill know of their night-time wanderer, but given the general prejudice against them, I suspect many would be unhappy to hear of it.
How much harm are they actually doing? Credible reports of attacks are few and far between, and are mainly on other nocturnal species. We are, after all, the ones who have invited the foxes to join us in our urban sprawls. As a nation we throw away tonnes of food waste and leave it on our streets for days on end. If you were a fox, would you bother to catch your own food if an urban street offered you hundreds of bags of rubbish with edible treats inside?
People are moaning about the problems they are causing in cities...well it's a bit late now! They have established here, and all because of us. Why not try to minimise the disturbance they cause, reduce the carrying capacity of the city, and maybe, the problem will begin to resolve itself. If Londoners really want the foxes gone, the destruction of individuals is certainly not the answer, as Simon Jenkins pointed out, another will just move into it's territory.
Is there not a role for someone to try and harmonise the coexistence of two of the UK's top predators? We, are ourselves, not unlike the foxes, who are only responding, like us, to the pressures of natural selection and survival. Find food to survive, find mates to propagate our own genes and maintain a territory in order to secure both of these things; our food/livelihood and our loved ones/ families.
Thanks,
Becky
No comments:
Post a Comment