dead fox - ***grisly***

[thebeard]

firstly, the pictures here are a little grisly - not too bad but apologies if anyone takes offence
now, i found a dead fox under a fence on monday, on some farmland by the river trent. not sure what the cause of death was, but i'm guessing its not natural causes. what i'd like to know is - what could have eaten its Brain???. i was thinking badger perhaps, but its strange that it was only its head that had been so brutally ripped open...

anyone got any clues? the photo of the actual head isn't too good, as it smelt quite bad and i couldn't get a good angle over the fence.

[tameblackbirds]

that is a sad picture poor thing Badger would seem likely.

[fluff11]

shotgun wound maybe?????????

[RKB]

Originally Posted by fluff11

shotgun wound maybe?????????

That was my thought. Caught in a snare, shutgunned, then threw over a fence.

Having said that, most animals go for the brain first, as this has a higher fat/energy content that most other parts of the body.

But foxes don't die under fences of their own accord. It might have been poisoned, or hit by a car and managed to make it a short distance, then been scavenged.

[thebeard]

the way it is positioned under the fence, it certainly looks like its been slung there by someone, its not a natural look. Upon your comments, i'd be inclined to believe its a shotgun wound. quite sad really, but i guess this happens all the time. i saw a beautiful live fox only about an hour before this one, hopefully that one will be safe

[danthekeeper]

looks to me like it has been shot with a rifle and thrown there I would doubt a snare was involved the fox's neck looks too clean as does the rest of the body the head of a fox is too strong for scavengers to start on they prefer the soft innards first then move on to the meat.How often do you find skulls of dead animals they aren't split like that

[Alex90]

With a lot of animals you will find that when they come across a carcase they tend to go for the brain first, as grisly as it sounds it must offer them more nutrients or perhaps taste better .

This is particularly noticable in rodents, rats and mice that have been caught and killed in traps will often be dragged away and eaten from the head down

I have also noticed this will species such as harvest mice in captivity, if an older animal passes away over night in the morning when you check on them its usually just a body and half a head ... not very pleasant!

Back to the subject of the fox, i wouldnt like to say what the cause of death was could be anything from a natural disease/illness to poison or shot but i doubt the missing brain is anything to do with the cause of death.

Could have been a variety of animals, anything strong enough to break the skull, other foxes, badgers even a domestic dog or cat. Im not sure if a weasel/stoat would be capable of inflicting much damage to the skull so i doubt it would be a mustelid.

[danthekeeper]

Originally Posted by Alex90

With a lot of animals you will find that when they come across a carcase they tend to go for the brain first, as grisly as it sounds it must offer them more nutrients or perhaps taste better .

This is particularly noticable in rodents, rats and mice that have been caught and killed in traps will often be dragged away and eaten from the head down
Could have been a variety of animals, anything strong enough to break the skull, other foxes, badgers even a domestic dog or cat. Im not sure if a weasel/stoat would be capable of inflicting much damage to the skull so i doubt it would be a mustelid.

With due respect and not wishing to start an argument or take the thread of topic but I have disposed of over 100 foxes per year for a long time and never have I seen the skull opened and the brain eaten in this way I have however seen a wound inflicted in that way with a rifle

[RKB]

I agree it isn't 'natural'.

That would be a high-powered rifle to make that kind of mess though, wouldn't it? Or would it be an exit wound at short range (but top of the head?). Why not a shotgun at close range?

Another alternative could be the skull was clobbered by a car, and the fox had enough adrenalin to make it to the fence, making it easier for a badger to open once it had died.

Re brains being eaten - the brain is actually high in fat, and has more calories than muscle. Animals/birds seem to know this, and the brain represents the largest concentration of fat you're likely to find in a wild animal.

[danthekeeper]

Originally Posted by RKB

I agree it isn't 'natural'.

That would be a high-powered rifle to make that kind of mess though, wouldn't it? Or would it be an exit wound at short range (but top of the head?). Why not a shotgun at close range?

Another alternative could be the skull was clobbered by a car, and the fox had enough adrenalin to make it to the fence, making it easier for a badger to open once it had died.

Re brains being eaten - the brain is actually high in fat, and has more calories than muscle. Animals/birds seem to know this, and the brain represents the largest concentration of fat you're likely to find in a wild animal.

Any rifle above rimfire would produce that wound and I would suspect the bullet both entered and exited its head,Shotgun maybe but for the charge to be so concentrated the fox would need to be very close within 10 feet and the carcase does not bear the signs of being snared.

It may have been hit by a car but if the impact was enough to cause a fractured skull enough for an open wound would it really have run off?

I agree the brain is high in fat/calories but in my experience I have never seen a fox carcase scavenged in this way the innards being the first to go.
Think about lions when they take a prey item which part do they eat first the head?