First Fox Cubs in Decades at Castle Wild Camp

This spring, we were treated to an exciting discovery - a family of foxes, including playful cubs, living on the Castle Wild Camp site. As far as we can tell, these may be the first fox cubs born here for decades.

Before our rewilding project began, the land was heavily gamekeepered. In those years, predators such as foxes, stoats, and birds of prey were routinely removed to protect (non-native) pheasants and other gamebirds for shooting. This approach, while part of the traditional countryside economy, often came at the expense of ecological balance, with knock-on effects for the whole food web.

A Change in Management

Since taking on the land, we’ve managed it for wildlife rather than game. That means no active control, allowing species to return naturally. The reappearance of fox cubs is a clear sign of how quickly wildlife can respond when pressures are lifted.

Wildlife Recovery in Balance

What’s particularly encouraging is that bird numbers are rising at the same time as fox numbers. We’ve seen the return of species such as grey partridge, and even a sighting of a corncrake - a bird absent from most of lowland England for decades. Mammal numbers are also increasing, from harvest mice to hedgehogs.

These results suggest that the traditional view - that foxes inevitably suppress all other wildlife - doesn’t hold up when habitats are healthy and food is plentiful. In our experience, a thriving predator population can sit alongside, and even indicate, a flourishing wider ecosystem.

Eco-Tourism as an Alternative

In rural areas, landowners have often relied on income from activities like pheasant shoots to sustain their businesses. However, eco-tourism offers an alternative that can support livelihoods without removing key species from the landscape.

At Castle Wild Camp, visitors come for the wildness - to camp among the birdsong, hear owls at night, and, if they’re lucky, catch a glimpse of a fox moving through the glades at dusk.

What's special about this is that it:

• Protects and enhances biodiversity rather than reducing it.

• Offers steady, seasonal income while keeping the land ecologically rich.

• Creates opportunities for education, photography, and wildlife experiences that shooting cannot match in sustainability terms.

  
  

Looking Forward

The return of the fox cubs, alongside the comeback of grey partridge, corncrake, and other species, shows that eco-tourism and rewilding can create rich, balanced ecosystems. Our project is still in its infancy and we can't wait to see what the future holds...