Red Fox Eyesight
I recently did a bit of coyote, red fox, and ground squirrel hunting near Leadore, Idaho. There was no shortage of opportunity. It was a great hunt, and I must thank Sparky Sparkes of M2D Camo for acting as guide and film crew. I hope the TV episode turns out well; I certainly had a great time shooting it.
I had one encounter that I wanted to share. I was getting ready to drive back home when I saw several red foxes near a group of dens. I got close by crawling on my knees through a shallow ditch in a field that the foxes utilized to travel from one den site to another. I was wearing a white shirt and blue jeans. The ditch was green.
All of a sudden two foxes came running down the ditch right toward me. I remained still and waited, expecting them to spot me and break away from the ditch. They didn’t. At 7 yards, I shot. The first fox fell with the first shot. I stopped shooting and let the other go.
Why didn’t the foxes see me? I was not camouflaged – white doesn’t blend in…or does it? Similar to coyotes, research indicates that foxes possess dichromatic vision. Green appears as shades of grey, the shade depending on the brightness of the green. Bright green most likely appears white or very light grey in color. Perhaps these foxes couldn’t see me because I actually did blend into my surroundings. Maybe not, but as soon as I stood up, the other fox certainly saw me and whirled around to head back to the den. It is anecdotal evidence at best, but it is certainly interesting.
This could mean two things: 1) Movement is everything, so stay still, and 2) We have to remember that camouflage is in the eyes of the beholder; what may not look like adequate camouflage to humans may work quite well on animals that see the world differently than us.
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