Hi all,
I have a fox behind my garden shed. I see her almost daily but usually only her face. She had already struck me as a very handsome, well marked animal. Yesterday I saw her run across the garden and her coat was black. I have never seen a black fox before, is this a colour variation? Or do I just have a very dirty fox?
I am trying to get pics but she shares the garden with two young dogs and she doesn't hang about. I will probably try drawing her out with food, with the dogs locked up of course.
Colin

I have never heard of this before Dogman. What time of day did you see the fox? If it was at night, then maybee it was just your eyes playing tricks on you.
Was the fox jet black or slightly brown? If it was slightly brown, then yes, it may have just been mud.
This may be too extreme, but if the fox was jet black, then maybee it could have picked up some oil from somewhere. Did the fox look in distress?

They can be blackish, though it's rare in the UK. Generally it's slightly more common in America (though still rare). If their coat is wet, or thinning (moult) they can look dark as the underpelt is dark grey. It would be excellent if you could get a picture.