Visited Point Defiance Zoo once again back in March. Managed to get video of this arctic fox. On a side note, it looks like the zoo is down to one fox now. They used to have 2 foxes (Maggie and Scout), but it appears that Scout may have been euthanized sometime in 2018 (old age). Maggie is getting up there in age too (I think 11 years old), so she might not be around for much longer too. Not sure if the zoo plans to get new foxes any time soon or any new playmates for Maggie, so only time will tell. It is worth noting that the Woodland Park Zoo used to have arctic foxes too, but not an more (at least not besides the animal ambassador arctic fox, though they mainly show him at some of the shows they do and is generally not on display for view by the general public).
Fun facts about Arctic foxes:
- Did you know that they are smaller than they appear? In photos they can look big, but if you see them first hand, they will appear rather small (almost the size of a typical house cat).
- Unlike red foxes, arctic foxes seem to be less shy around humans. At Northwest Trek, they have red foxes and the red foxes have a tendency to hide and keep their distance, and there are times you can't see them at all. Arctic foxes at the Point Defiance Zoo on the other hand are harder to miss when they are out and will come out to "say hi" sometimes (even checking out the visitors).
- Best time of year to see arctic foxes: winter (say between November and March). Sure it is colder in the winter, but the foxes are usually out and they are usually in their white coats. I've been there sometimes in the middle of summer when it is hot and sometimes they will hide in their dens if it is too warm. It is also worth noting that arctic foxes are designed to survive in cold weather considering that they originate in the arctic regions (near the arctic ocean) and can survive temperatures as low as about 70 degrees celsius. In the Seattle area, temperatures rarely get below zero and usually range in the 20s to 40s, so as far as the arctic foxes are concerned, winters here are mild to them.
- They also come in 2 coat varieties. In the winter, they will be fluffy and white, however if you see them in the summer, they will have shed their white coats and their appearances change with their coats being grayish brown and look almost like a different species of fox (even though they are still arctic foxes).
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Fun facts about Arctic foxes:
- Did you know that they are smaller than they appear? In photos they can look big, but if you see them first hand, they will appear rather small (almost the size of a typical house cat).
- Unlike red foxes, arctic foxes seem to be less shy around humans. At Northwest Trek, they have red foxes and the red foxes have a tendency to hide and keep their distance, and there are times you can't see them at all. Arctic foxes at the Point Defiance Zoo on the other hand are harder to miss when they are out and will come out to "say hi" sometimes (even checking out the visitors).
- Best time of year to see arctic foxes: winter (say between November and March). Sure it is colder in the winter, but the foxes are usually out and they are usually in their white coats. I've been there sometimes in the middle of summer when it is hot and sometimes they will hide in their dens if it is too warm. It is also worth noting that arctic foxes are designed to survive in cold weather considering that they originate in the arctic regions (near the arctic ocean) and can survive temperatures as low as about 70 degrees celsius. In the Seattle area, temperatures rarely get below zero and usually range in the 20s to 40s, so as far as the arctic foxes are concerned, winters here are mild to them.
- They also come in 2 coat varieties. In the winter, they will be fluffy and white, however if you see them in the summer, they will have shed their white coats and their appearances change with their coats being grayish brown and look almost like a different species of fox (even though they are still arctic foxes).
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Featured ads from Amazon
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