Why Do Foxes Scream? Decoding the Sounds of the January Night

It happens every year around this time. You’re drifting off to sleep, warm and cosy under the duvet, when suddenly the night is shattered by a sound that makes your blood run cold.

It’s a scream. A proper, hair-raising, blood-curdling shriek that sounds worryingly human.

If you live in a town or city in the UK, you know exactly the sound I mean. It’s enough to make you reach for the phone to call the police. But before you do, pause a moment.

The culprit isn’t a person in distress; it’s likely a lovestruck Vixen in your back garden.

January is peak mating season for the Red Fox (Vulpes vulpes), and the nights are full of their drama. Here is the science behind why our streets sound like a horror movie right now.

The “Vixen’s Scream”

While foxes make about 20 different sounds, the one waking you up is technically known as the “Vixen’s Scream.”

Despite how terrifying it sounds to us, it isn’t a cry of pain. It is a contact call. The female fox (vixen) lets out this piercing shriek to signal to male foxes (dogs) that she is single, in the area, and ready to mate.

It is a sound evolved to cut through the darkness and travel long distances—or in modern terms, to cut through the noise of traffic and reach the next housing estate.

Bark vs. Scream: Who is Who?

Once you tune in, you can actually start to tell the difference between the sexes just by listening.

• The Scream: As mentioned, this is usually the female. It’s a high-pitched, single-note wail that rises and falls.
• The Bark: The male often responds with a short, sharp “wo-wo-wo” bark. It sounds a bit like a hoarse dog trying to cough.

If you hear these two sounds answering each other, you are eavesdropping on a courtship ritual. The male is essentially shouting, “I heard you! I’m on my way!”

The “Lock” (Or Why They Can’t Get Away)

Sometimes, you might hear a lot of scuffling and low-level whimpering noises that last for ages. This brings us to the more awkward part of fox romance: the “Copulatory Tie.”

Foxes have a rather unusual mating mechanism. During the act, the male and female physically lock together. Due to the swelling of the male’s anatomy (specifically the bulbus glandis), they cannot separate.

They can be stuck like this—often facing in opposite directions—for anywhere from 20 minutes to an hour.

It’s a survival strategy to ensure fertilization, but it leaves them vulnerable. If they are startled while “tied” (say, by you opening the back door), they can’t run away, which leads to a lot of distressed vocalisation.

The Banshee Myth

This screaming is so unnerving that it has shaped our folklore.

Many historians and naturalists now believe that the Irish legend of the Banshee—the fairy woman whose scream foretold death—was actually inspired by the call of the fox.

Imagine living in a rural cottage centuries ago, with no streetlights. If you heard that unearthly wail coming from the pitch-black darkness, you wouldn’t think “wildlife”; you’d think “ghost.”

It makes you realize that even our scariest ghost stories often have a root in nature.

A Sign of Life

So, the next time you are woken up at 2 a.m. by a scream from the garden, try not to be too annoyed.

It’s a sign that nature is still finding a way to thrive right alongside us, even in the concrete jungle.

Those screams are the sound of the next generation of cubs being planned. It is effectively the starting gun for the spring baby boom.

Before long, these noisy winter nights will give way to the sights of cubs playing and the gentler scenes of lambing season across the dales.

Just maybe invest in some good earplugs until February!