What Colors Are Foxes?

Foxes can come in all different colors, it really just depends on the breed of fox. There are approximately 25 to 30 different breeds of foxes. Generally a foxes coat is red (hence the name red fox), with the back of the ears and the front of the legs black, and the throat and stomach either white or grey. There is a genetic mutation with an absence of guard hairs, known as the Samson fox, and very rarely white individuals have been recorded.

Black foxes are quite common in North America. These foxes, although they are black are known as “silver foxes” as the hair on their butts are tipped with silver and stands out against the black fur that covers the rest of their bodies. One other variation is the cross fox, which is only present in North America. The cross fox has a prominent black stripe along their spine as well as a stripe along their shoulders at a right angle, which gives the appearance of a cross, hence its name “cross fox”. Other breeds and colors include the arctic fox (white in the winter and brown in the summer in the Arctic), the swift fox (orange, tan, and about the same size as a domesticated cat), and the grey fox.