You might spot a fox about anywhere in the Jackson Hole valley and Grand Teton National Park at any time of the year, but they look best in the winter. During the summer months, they are in the process of shedding their thick winter coats and regrowing new summer fur. Keep a camera ready!
GTNP began a “fox study” a few years ago, and suddenly the population dropped to a fraction of previous years. Many of the remaining foxes showed up with ear tags and collars. Park official’s tolerance for habituated foxes is very low, so much like the slogan for the bears, foxes must live un the mantra of “a fed fox is a dead fox”. Unfortunately for the foxes, they are quick learners and will return to areas where they had been fed.
Outside the park, foxes can be hunted and trapped. As a result, some are more leary of people than the otherwise protected foxes in the park. Some foxes roam neighborhoods and build dens under homeowner’s decks and sheds. There seems to be an ebb and flow to the fox population. They can show up in good numbers in one area of the valley for a year or two, then disappear for several years.
