Scientists: Red Foxes Use Magnetic Field to Help Them Hunt

A Discovery Channel video shows how red foxes pinpoint field mice buried deep beneath snow using their incredible hearing and the magnetic field of the North Pole.

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“He almost always comes up empty handed, unless he’s facing north,” the narrator says of the red fox featured mousing in the video. “But how’s that possible? As unbelievable as it sounds, scientists now think he’s actually honing in on the magnetic field of the planet, using it to calculate and plot his trajectory, the kind of math missiles use to hit their targets. Just the slightest distraction can throw him off. But if he’s got the North Pole in his sights, he’s guaranteed a meal nearly 75 percent of the time.”

Sometimes nature is pretty incredible.

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Pick up some tips on catching foxes with snares. James Ushak reveals his strategies in his story “Canine Cable Hanging” in the January 2013 issue.

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