On Academia

 https://independent.academia.edu/TerryHooper

Foxes In Ireland/Eire

 

We know that foxhunting was still an elite 'sport' in the early 19th century. In fact, from the late 1830s -into the 1840s there was criticism that as starvation spread through Ireland the sport continued as though nothing was happening.  That should come as no surprise since the English treated the Irish and Welsh as "sub-humans".  Poor people were dying but what had that to do with society's 'sport'?

The Field - Saturday 08 January 1898 reports on fox hunting in Meath and surrounding area and the foxes do not seem to be in the numbers of former years.  An island species relentlessly hunted along with cubbing in which young foxes are thrown to hounds so they "get the taste" and no restraint on killing pregnant vixens means that a population soon drops in numbers. Dullards, however, still see "foxes in abundance!"

As detailed in The Red Paper 2022 Canids the shortage of foxes in Ireland became a problem and as "gifts" English Masters of Fox Hounds sent gifts of Mountain foxes (the largest of the three Old fox types) to Irish MFHs. However, it is unclear whether the shortage of 'sport' was due to foxes in Irelands wet and cold climate were wiped out in the most accessible areas but still continued in more remote areas.  Certainly there were still Mountain foxes captured in rugged areas and transported to hunt areas.

We also know that foxes in Ireland were surviving somewhat better than their English counterparts. In the early 20th century questions were asked in the British Parliament after English hunts committed outrages -having people "steal" foxes from Ireland and brought to England.  This is all detailed in the book and I no longer give out free research so if you want the details...buy the book!

The above photograph from Eire shows a fox with a lot of Old fox traits and I have detailed those here:

Examining An Old Fox and New Fox

https://foxwildcatwolverineproject.blogspot.com/2025/09/examining-old-fox-and-new-fox.html

With t6he submergence of Doggerland 8-10 thousand years ago, mainland Britain was separated from mainland Europe and its wildlife became unique island species.  When the water levels rose again Britain and Ireland were separated by the Irish Sea.  This means that species trapped there had to adapt and become another unique Irish population. I commented on that here:

Old Irish, British and European Foxes -a few words

https://foxwildcatwolverineproject.blogspot.com/2025/04/old-irish-british-and-european-foxes.html

Naturalists have noted that "Irish foxes don';t quite look the same as those from England. No big surprise. In fact, while looking into the "Achill Island Wolves" often referred to by Cryptozoologists (who have yet to understand or undertake "research work") I found foxes there. Achill is a small island on Ireland's south coast  so how did they get there?  Again, this was discussed in The Red Paper. What this means is that the Achill foxes are another unique island species -although I can find no one on the island or elsewhere willing to discuss them.

There was an interesting article on the number of foxes in Ireland which I looked at here:

Does Ireland Have A Thriving Fox Population -and why?

https://foxwildcatwolverineproject.blogspot.com/2024/10/does-ireland-have-thriving-fox.html

I do not believe that Ireland -Northern or Republic- has a "thriving population" and the vague numbers seem to come from the "usual sources": those who are pro hunt and over exaggerate fox numbers to justify their killing sprees (it is NOT "control" in any way shape or form because if you wanted to control such a population why is the history of the UK and Ireland full of well documented public news items and book references to importing more "for sport"?

The other big source for these figures are pest control companies for who call outs to "deal with foxes" are big money. Their 'knowledge' of the animals (that they brag about) is often incorrect and full of pro hunt jargon disguised as "expert opinion".

Evidence would seem to support the fact that the situation in Northern Ireland and Eire is similar to the mainland UK: urban foxes (with the usual death rates by car and rodenticide) and a dwindling (over exaggerated) population in the countryside.

I have had little success in finding remains of genuine Irish wolves that could one day be DNA studied but I would expect there to be a number of taxidermy examples of foxes killed across the island pre 1860. It is just finding people who have them and are willing to communicate!

I proved, based on contemporary accounts,  back in 2000 that there were wild cats in Ireland. The Red Paper 2022 Felids provided the physical evidence of their existence -something archaeology is now proving.  I hope that in 2026 I can at least succeed in finding evidence of Old foxes in Ireland.

But then there is the question of who will pay for DNA testing?

The Extermination of Wild Canid Species Continues

 At one time I was an advocate for the return of species to replace those that had been exterminated by humans. I was younger back then and in the decades since such foolish thinking I have seen species returned to former territories only to face extinction again and for no justifiable reason.

Europe wants to start its wolf killing again after the species has recovered -money and political corruption for money and votes has been a good friend to the hunt crazed.

Ireland/Eire has voted to not ban fox hunting despite the fox species in the country likely being a unique island species. But the fun of hunting a killing a domestic cat sized canid for no reason gives those involved the "physical invigoration" they require to feel male again.

And now this from the US based Wolf Conservation Centre:

BREAKING - The US House of Representatives just voted 211-204 to advance H.R. 845, the anti-wolf bill, to the Senate. If this bill passes the Senate, thousands of wolves will be slaughtered.

Contact your Senator and let them know that this bill CANNOT pass

 https://bit.ly/3MBG3kd

Curious if your Representative voted the way you asked them to? View the roll call vote and send them a thank you note if they listened to you http://clerk.house.gov/Votes/2025360

If your Representative didn't vote the way you asked them to, or didn't vote at all, consider asking them why they didn't vote the way their constituents, and a majority of Americans, wanted them to. We'll be making a similar call today, too. 

My stance these days is simple: if humans exterminate a species (there is no such thing as 'by accident' or 'unknowingly') then that species must not be replaced or "reintroduced" because that only means there will be more killing in future and despite this being the 21st century we have not learnt a single lesson: species of all kinds are going extinct and those with the power to do something do not care to do so: power and money isd more important than species dying out.

It Should Shock Any Animal Lover

 Just so that everyone understands the ultimate death toll when given (1st January, 2026).

Very few people report dead animals -even pets seen dead are not reported. The response is still, after a decade of trying to explain: "It's a dead animal who cares?" and "Someone else will report it -my time is far too important to waste". More often the line "Well I see them dead on the road all the time when driving around Bristol"

Which means that the foxes and badgers that are reported -and it is still a case of hearing about most by accident- is not a true number.

Statistically: "It is impossible to provide a single, precise number for the actual estimate, as road death incidents are significantly underreported. However, a figure of 360 reported incidents suggests the actual number could range from approximately 1,000 to over 5,000, or potentially much higher, depending on the species and location. "

Bear that in mind.

A Few Words on The Work

 

 As I have noted before there is only one full time fox researcher (50 years) and only one body  (The British Fox (and Wild Canids) Study f 1976) looking at red foxes in the UK as well as the true history of foxes -looking at the Old foxes that became extinct.

Over the decades the work has cost me thousands but there is no real academic interest in foxes apart from the occasional very narrow scoped short term projects.   Basically, it is a lonely business that has very few collaborators.

Threats? Oh, those are standard if you are involved in wildlife work. When I was a UK police forces exotic wildlife consultant I got all kinds of threats. In recent years, due to the fox work, I have opened the front door to find a short hangman's noose on the door step (I still have that if the sender wants it back) . A decapitated pigeon and even decapitated rat.  The official problems from doing this work also mount up.

Over the decades I have applied for UK wildlife grants but was always told (if I insisted on a reason) "Foxes aren't covered". I tried EU grants -but they will not tell you why your application was a failure just who else got the grant. 

DNA work is the next step but whereas at least one UK university will examine material alleged to have come from "big cats" in the countryside, none will even consider DNA testing extinct fox and wild cat types. Which means DNA testing would need to be paid for and that is expensive and you need a lab that can access the data base needed to compare samples. 

Really, all of the archival research and documentation has been carried out so that there is absolutely no doubt that the British Isles had three distinct Old fox variants and with Ireland the same applies. However, if we want to correct the record and push aside over a century of dogma DNA is the final proof.

Sadly, I doubt we will ever see DNA testing.

Thoughts on Re-Introduction

  It is a FACT that English, Welsh and Scottish wild cats were hunted to extinction. At a meeting of Scottish zoologists in 1898 one of the speakers was a man who had studied Scottish wild cats for 40 years. He declared that the wild cat had become extinct decades before and the 1860s was decided and agreed upon.

What you see in museums are not wild cats but hybrids of European wild cats. What are being financed and released are nothing more than hybrid European wild cats.

These cats are raised wild before release, but face the same threats such as cars or shooting and trapping on estates. They cannot be guarded 24/7 and you can bet the odd shooter who considers his/herself a 'sports' person is going to be out looking for one. The shooting community long ago share locations of where the releases would take place.

They want to introduce lynx and wolves back to Scotland and while lynx have survived in Scotland and even England in recent times (officially 1920s-1930s) they were all shot. Back in the 1990s an escaped arctic fox was shot by a farmer because "it looked unusual". Same decade in Shropshire a moron farmer shot an escaped ring tailed lemur because "it was an unusual animal"

There are far too many people in the UK who love to go out with rifles (often in groups) to shoot whatever they can find for 'fun' and they could not care less that the fox population has dropped by 60% -the old hunts had the same view: "We MUST have our sport".

The law states that a fox can be "dealt with" if a threat to livestock. Foxes in urban areas hunting rats and similar are no threat but who cares? We do know that in some areas off duty police officers take part in the 'sport' when they should be stopping it as unnecessary killing of wildlife (not to mention pets and the occasional live stock).

As I have gotten older so my stance has changed. The UK is not an animal loving set of countries and government legislation as well as local authorities do all they can to allow developers to destroy habitat while not caring about the mass of wildlife shot or killed by cars.

I would NEVER support the introduction of any species to replace one humans have made extinct. History has shown those species would only be targeted again.

Extinction is forever

There Is Only ONE UK Fox Study Started in 1976

 

Yes, I run the British Fox and Wild Canids Study (f 1976) and it is the only organisation in the UK working permanently on (specifically) Fox history, welfare and conservation.

I run and do most of the workj with occasional research volunteers. Why not more people involved?

There is absolutely no funding for such a study in the UK where species, even supposedly protected ones, are considered expendable and an annoyance to developers.

I bankrupted myself carrying out this work but what has been learnt was forgotten. Lost. I would very much like to do more such as DNA testing on Old Fox and Old wild cat species -those hunting drive into extinction in the mid 18th century- but no funding makes this difficult.

Do others with an interest in fox species (in other countries) find no real interest?

Ja, ich leite die British Fox and Wild Canids Study (gegr. 1976), die einzige Organisation in Großbritannien, die sich dauerhaft mit der Geschichte, dem Wohlergehen und dem Schutz von Füchsen befasst.

Ich leite die Studie und erledige den Großteil der Arbeit, gelegentlich unterstützt von ehrenamtlichen Forschern. Warum engagieren sich nicht mehr Menschen?

In Großbritannien gibt es keinerlei Fördermittel für solche Studien. Arten, selbst vermeintlich geschützte, gelten dort als entbehrlich und als Ärgernis für Bauherren.

Ich habe mich durch diese Arbeit ruiniert, doch die gewonnenen Erkenntnisse sind in Vergessenheit geraten. Verloren. Ich würde sehr gerne weitere Studien durchführen, beispielsweise DNA-Tests an alten Fuchs- und Wildkatzenarten – jenen, die Mitte des 18. Jahrhunderts durch die Jagd ausgerottet wurden –, aber die fehlende Finanzierung macht dies unmöglich.

Finden andere, die sich für Fuchsarten interessieren (in anderen Ländern), ebenfalls wenig Unterstützung?

Oui, je dirige l'Étude britannique sur le renard et les canidés sauvages (fondée en 1976), la seule organisation au Royaume-Uni qui travaille en permanence sur l'histoire, le bien-être et la conservation du renard.

Je dirige l'organisation et effectue la majeure partie du travail, avec l'aide ponctuelle de bénévoles chercheurs. Pourquoi ne pas impliquer davantage de personnes ?

Au Royaume-Uni, ce type d'étude ne bénéficie d'aucun financement. Les espèces, même celles censées être protégées, y sont considérées comme superflues et gênantes pour les promoteurs immobiliers.

J'ai ruiné ce travail, et les connaissances acquises ont été oubliées. Perdues. J'aimerais beaucoup approfondir la question, notamment en réalisant des tests ADN sur les anciennes espèces de renards et de chats sauvages – celles qui ont disparu à cause de la chasse au milieu du XVIIIe siècle – mais l'absence de financement rend cela difficile.

D'autres personnes s'intéressant aux espèces de renards (dans d'autres pays) ne constatent-elles aucun intérêt réel ?