🦊 Red Fox
Vulpes vulpes
The prime suspect behind most terrifying backyard screams. Foxes are small, shy and startlingly loud.
🔊 Hear the call
🦊 Red Fox
Reference call (simulated)
“A hoarse, human-like scream or shriek, plus short barks and gekkering chatter”
What they sound like
A hoarse, human-like scream or shriek, plus short barks and gekkering chatter
Why they make this sound
- · Vixens screaming to attract mates in winter
- · Territorial warnings between rivals
- · Gekkering — the chattering argument sound during standoffs
When you’ll hear them
Night, peaking sharply during the January–February mating season
Where they live
Farmland, woodland edges, suburbs and city fringes Across the Northern Hemisphere
Fun fact
Yep. They really sound like that. Most “someone is in trouble outside” calls are foxes.
Should I be concerned?
Not a threat to people. Keep small pets in at night, secure chicken coops and never feed them.
Sound signature
- Sound type
- Mammal vocalization — scream
- Pitch
- High and raspy
- Pattern
- Single drawn-out shrieks with long pauses
- Frequency
- 700–4,000 Hz