Foxes are one of the many animals mentioned in the Jewish Bible. Foxes are part of the dog family and can be rather small. With that in mind you can understand the greatness of the insult directed toward the Jewish people by the Samarians when they were trying to rebuild Jerusalem “… ‘What does this bunch of poor, feeble Jews think they’re doing?…Tobiah the Ammonite, who was standing beside him, remarked, ‘That stone wall would collapse if even a fox walked along the top of it! Then I prayed, ‘Hear us, our God, for we are being mocked. May their scoffing fall back on their own heads, and may they themselves become captives in a foreign land!’” Nehemiah 4:2-4
There are many varieties of foxes and perhaps one of most well known is the red fox. Good places in Israel to see red foxes are said to be in the areas surrounding the Golan Heights, eastern Galilee, and Hula Valley (“Israel”, n.d). Red foxes are not very picky about their diet and will eat small animals such as birds, mice rabbits and squires. They also eat bugs such as grasshoppers, beetles, and caterpillars (“Red Fox - Vulpes vulpes”, n.d). Foxes are also known to eat fruit such as apples, strawberries, and grapes (Saunders, D. A. 1988). This may be why it is written, “Catch all the foxes, those little foxes, before they ruin the vineyard of love, for the grapevines are blossoming!” Song of Solomon 2:15
Foxes maybe annoying to some people, but not everyone in Israel wants to catch the little foxes-especially with their cars. So Israel has begun to build a special walkway over the Jerusalem-Tel Aviv highway so the foxes and other animals can get across the road unharmed. Besides simply building a bridge the project plans to also restore many areas of vegetation on both sides of the highway and replant 30,000 flowers in Jewish National Fund’s Rabin Park around Sha’ar Hagai. (Leichman, Klein Abigail 2016) This may also attract animals that foxes depend on for food and help support the wildlife in Israel overall.
References:
Author Unknown n.d “Red Fox - Vulpes vulpes” Nature Works received from http://www.nhptv.org/natureworks/redfox.htm
Author Unknown n.d “Israel” Mammal Watching received from http://mammalwatching.com/Palearctic/palearctisrael.html
Leichman, Klein Abigail (2016) “Why do foxes, jackals and hyenas cross Israel’s Highway 1? To get to the other side, thanks to a new eco-bridge constructed as part of Israel’s rerouting of the Jerusalem-Tel Aviv highway.” http://www.israel21c.org/why-do-foxes-jackals-and-hyenas-cross-israels-highway-1/
Saunders, D. A. 1988 “Red Fox” Adirondack Ecological Center received from http://www.esf.edu/aec/adks/mammals/red_fox.htm
Picture originally found here
