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numerous rabbits in the vicinity. The weather
on the evening of the fox watch was good, a
slight breeze, sun still shining, but the
evening getting quite cool as the light faded.
We had arranged to meet at 7.00 p.m. and I
arrived a little earlier to check on the best
place for the group to sit. I was a little
disconcerted to find an adult and three cubs
playing together out in the open. Fears that
the foxes might not show were dispelled, to be
replaced by the worry that they might leave and
not show again when the group was gathered.
By 7.30 p.m. the other members of the group had
arrived and we settled ourselves on the bank.
We had a clear view of the area where the foxes
are usually seen, but were sufficiently distant
so as not to disturb them.
After a short while a cub came in from the
left, investigating and exploring the area,
sniffing at gorse bushes and nosing through the
long grass. This cub was then joined by an
adult, possibly the vixen. On the adult's
arrival the cub tried to solicit food. The
cub does this by assuming a submissive posture,
ears laid back flat, body and tail held low,
approaching from below and licking the muzzle
of the adult. The cub often got excited and
started wagging its tail whilst still keeping
the low posture. We did not see the adult
give food to the cub. This display of
submission is often seen in a subordinate adult
towards a dominant member of the social group.
For approximately an hour we watched the adult
and cub disappear and reappear, sometimes with