by William C. Leikam
President, CEO & Co-founder, Urban Wildlife Research Project
Gray Foxes Bold and Squat - A Struggle for Territory
Early on the morning of October 26, 2012, at a place I called Skunk Hill, I called to the foxes. A few minutes later, one of the pups I named Bold emerged from the brush and trotted up the slope to greet me. I stayed with her for about ten minutes, taking pictures and simply watching.
I decided to leave and go back down the road leading into Fox Hollow, where the natal den is located. (I never enter a natal den area.) The young, full-grown gray fox Bold was in her first year. She followed me. Knowing they don’t like to be out in the open, I took the Fox Hollow Trail that runs along the edge of the water treatment plant’s chain-link fence, where there was a brushy area.
The two of us came down the trail running alongside the fence. Bold had fallen a bit behind. On the other side of the fence, Squat, Bold’s father, walked. He stopped and looked my way, keeping his ears tuned to me. I also paused to see what he might do. Suddenly, Bold caught up with me, and as soon as she saw Squat, she dashed off down the trail into Fox Hollow.
I knew that something wasn’t right. Squat hurried along the fenceline until he found a place where he could come through to my side. There, where Bold had dashed down the trail, Squat hurriedly and in an agitated manner sniffed the air, caught Bold’s scent, and he ran after her, his nose to the ground.
I thought, “Well, that’s it. No more pictures. They’re gone.” Nonetheless, I followed as quickly as I could, and when I topped the hill and looked down into Fox Hollow, there up the road stood a fox. I couldn’t tell which one it was.
I called Squat as I stumbled down the hill to the road. Ahead were both Squat and Bold, facing off with one another. Squat was nearest to his natal den’s entrance. As I approached, I took photos of both. I hurried to where they were.
I was gripped by the tension in the air, and especially from Bold. Squat stood looking at her. Suddenly, she dashed across the road, then charged directly into her father’s space. The two of them growled at each other, barred their teeth, barked, and hissed. In a flash, they were together fighting, but it lasted for only a few seconds.
They separated. They looked into the brush behind me. I looked, and there, standing back by a clump of trees, was a third fox watching. When Bold saw him, she ran to him. They headed out into the salt marsh. I couldn’t locate them, so I went back to the road.
And Squat was gone. I never saw him again.
I decided to leave, but about 50 yards up the road, Bold and the other fox she’d chased out onto the marsh. I walked up to them. They stayed with me for about 30 seconds, and during that time, I realized that the second fox had been in the area when Bold was deciding which of two males she would allow —maybe both. Female gray foxes are polyandrous. Eventually, they trotted off across the truck washing pad and disappeared into the brush.
I wondered what that event signified. I started piecing together my thoughts, and what I discovered was a pattern that led me to conclude this encounter between Squat and Bold was a territorial dispute. In the end, this newcomer became Bold’s mate Gray. They had five litters of pups before both of them died from canine distemper in 2016.
Comments are welcome.
What's Happening at UWRP?
Alie Ward’s podcast Ologies can be accessed on any of the podcast “stations” online such as Apple, Spotify iHeart, Podbay, or here at her website https://www.alieward.com/ologies/urocynology. If you chose the website, scroll down the page to find out more. In the very beginning there is a short advertisement before Alie and I get into the fray of it all. Enjoy. If you thought it worthwhile, please, spread the word through your personal networks.
Alie Ward will be doing a book special wherein she will promote my book the Road to Fox Hollow, along with other books published by those people who she interviewed this past year.
Read the latest about Bill in this new article posted on Palo Alto Online: Experts push for creek naturalization after rare beaver died in Palo Alto
Bill was interviewed for an article in the San Jose Mercury News about the effects of noise pollution upon wildlife. Although not quoted in the article, it’s still worth reading: “Learning How Noise Affects Wildlife” Urban sound is unavoidable, but its effects on threatened species are only beginning to be understood. Written by Claudia Steiner, December 27, 2025.
If you or your organization would like to have Bill aka the Fox Guy present one of his four PowerPoint presentations:
1. A Year with the Urban Gray Fox – MOST POPULAR
2. Human Development, Sixth Mass Extinction & Gray Foxes – An historical look at how we got to our present place in history.
3. Gray Fox Cognition – What & How Gray Foxes Perceive – This is a speculative attempt to get inside the mind of a gray fox
4. Corridors & Connections – Sustaining the Health of Our Wildlife – The title says it all
Contact us here https://urbanwildliferesearchproject.org/contact/ and let us know that you would like to have the Fox Guy give a presentation to your organization, corporation, or a home visit.
Bill Will be giving a talk to the Palo Alto University Rotary Club on April 14th, 2026. He will be speaking to the Environmental Volunteers https://www.environmentalvolunteers.org/ecocenter/ at as yet to be determined date.
On April 18th, Bill and an assistant will be at a tabling event at Safari West (https://safariwest.com/) . Come join us on that date. This is a large gathering of most wildlife related organizations in the San Francisco Bay Area.
Bill will give a short presentation in the Elephant Room at Safari West, on July 25th at 8:00 PM. These are always fun events because the parents bring their kids to hear about foxes. Over the years that I’ve done this show; I find that the kids ask better questions than the adults.
Videos and Documentaries
My journey to the University of Zurich, Switzerland, Triggered By Motion
Bill’s book The Road to Fox Hollow can be purchased directly from Bill for a mere $20.00. Just email him through the Contact form on the Urban Wildlife Research Project’s website, leave your email address and he will get back to you. Or you can contact the publisher Di Angelo Publications .
A video documentary about Bill’s work with the foxes and produced at Stanford University by Syler Peralta-Ramos.
What happens when an opossum and a red fox meet in the night?
In contrast to two other raccoon discipline videos, this one is rather mild.
Gray Fox Playfulness “Hugging” Behaviors.
See the violence of Discipline Raccoon Style.
“How to be a Fox” The article about Bill and his ethological approach to his study of the gray fox is online here. Many are calling this a major article in the wildlife press.
Be Sure to check out our YouTube Channel for some incredible wildlife videos.
Grey Fox General Health
NEWS FLASH — The pair of gray foxes that were in the Palo Alto Baylands Nature Preserve several months ago have left the region probably due to the influx of red foxes, and a coyote pack of five – four youngsters and an adult. Presently, we are monitoring them.
Gray Fox, Baylands Goals
Within the permit that allows the Urban Wildlife Research Project to conduct its study of the behavior of the gray fox at the Palo Alto Baylands Nature Preserve, the objectives covered are:
- Monitoring of urban gray fox Denning sites in Palo Alto Baylands.
This is being accomplished during the period when the gray foxes use a den site. It is one of the prime locations for gathering most of the behavioral data of the litter and for adults alike.
- Assessment of status and population trends of Baylands urban gray foxes.
Since January 2019 a pair of resident gray foxes have claimed territory at the Palo Alto Baylands Nature Preserve.
- Identification of habitat features that promote the presence of urban gray foxes.
The Urban Wildlife Research Project is working on a project to remove the concrete from Matadero Creek that will create linkages and corridors between the Santa Cruz Mountain Range and the Palo Alto baylands..
- Assessment of reproductive success and identification of factors that promote successful reproduction.
Open the pinch-point along Matadero Creek by developing thickets that link one area to another, instead of the present island-like habitat.
- Identification and assessment of possible dispersal travel routes.
Dispersal routes move between the Palo Alto Baylands Nature Preserve and the Shoreline region over in Mountain View. In a north-westerly direction the dispersal corridors run just behind the homes bordering the marshlands in East Palo Alto.
Read more about UWRP in the news:
