Wednesday 16 January 2008

Fox on a sheep's back


Sporting Shooter reader Trevor White has sent in a remarkable sequence of photos taken by his friend Clive Spicer, near Worthing in W Sussex. The photos show a fox apparently eating ticks etc from a sheep's back. This one shows, in the background, the more common sight of a pair of magpies doing the same thing - you'll often see starlings etc feeding on the backs of sheep, but I've never before heard of a fox doing it, and it's amazing that the sheep doesn't seem to mind. More in the March issue of the magazine, on sale 1 Feb.

4 comments:

The Suburban Bushwacker said...

great pic, is the fox eating ticks?
SBW

James Marchington said...

Clive watched the fox for some time, and that's what he reckoned it was doing. The sheep seemed totally happy about the whole thing, and the fox even laid down for a rest on its back at one point.

Hunter Angler Gardener Cook said...

You don't see that every day. I kinda like foxes, actually. But then I don't keep chickens. Now could you imagine a coyote doing that with a sheep? I think not.

Albert A Rasch said...

That's an amazing picture! And I always thought that sheep didn't like any kind of canid.

Come to think of it, I don't think I've ever noticed any dog eating ticks. I wonder if foxes are adapting to use that as a supplement to their diet?

Regards,
Albert