On 9 July we shared this lighthearted post on the Glebe Society’s Facebook Page:

Seriously … a fox has been sighted in Glebe at least twice in the last few weeks. The first sighting was at St Scholastica’s School, another was at the end of Bridge Rd, and another was of the wily fox crossing the Booth St end of Wigram Rd. If anyone else has seen our furry friend, could you let us know?

The Facebook post received many comments confirming the sighting, but the following letter from John and Jenny Sergeant drew our attention to the serious consequences of feral animals in Glebe.

Dear Glebe Society,

Rather than being a quaint curiosity, the fox, which we now learn has been seen numerous times in Oxley, Leichhardt and Mary Streets, is more of a menace. Many Glebe Society members, who use the foreshore walk, would be aware of our chickens. Children and adults on the walk would delight in seeing them … and they were beloved family pets (and good layers).

A couple of months ago, they were torn to shreds by a fox, and bits of their bodies left all over the neighbourhood. It was very distressing for our young family and for all those who had grown accustomed to saying hello to the birds in the course of their walks.

Heaven only knows how many native animals the fox has eaten when chicken is not on the menu.

We believe that the City should engage a professional to trap, collar and trace the fox, so that it and its family can be euthanased. Foxes do not belong in this country and certainly not in Glebe. Our chickens were pets. If a cat or a dog had been dismembered in this brutal fashion, we have no doubt that Council would act.

Kind regards,

John and Jenny Sergeant

Other fox sightings in Glebe reported on the Society’s social media
Three years ago, a visitor to our Facebook page asked: ‘Anyone seen a fox in Glebe? A local chook has been taken. The crime has a fox’s MO.’ In mid-June this year, we tweeted: ‘There are rumours of a fox in #Glebe! Has anyone else seen it?’ A number of Twitter users tweeted back: ‘Yes, I saw it on crossing on Wigram Rd. The Booth St end, near the canal’ and ‘If your cat food keeps disappearing, good chance it’s the glebe fox. Spotted at #schols #glebe‘.

Here are some more responses to our 9 July Facebook post – the one that prompted John and Jenny Sergeant’s letter to the editor:

  • Yep! A few weeks ago we saw one crossing the road under the bridge near Glebe auto/light rail. Could not believe it!
  • I was walking the dog a couple of months ago and we found a fox hiding in bushes behind the Hilda Booler Kindergarten. It ran off up Alexandra Rd.
  • A friend saw one near the old incinerator at Blackwattle Bay Park.
  • Saw one about 2 months ago near the light rail at Rozelle Bay.
  • My wife has seen a fox about 4 years ago.
  • Yep, they’re definitely around. There’s even bandicoots sighted in north Annandale
  • We saw a lot of them before the Harold Park racetrack was demolished. Have seen them pretty regularly since about 2003.
  • They’ve been around for years. I saw one back in about 2005-06 early one winter’s morning sitting prettily, surveying the view over the city, in the park on Avon St.
  • Saw the fox last night around 10.45pm. The fox was crossing the road opposite Harold Park where the canal runs under the road, on The Crescent.

Not long after this, the Facebook Group, ‘Annandale 2038’, shared our post and they received the following responses:

  • I saw one about 2 years in Jubilee Park just before 6am.
  • I saw one in the railyards when RMS gave me a tour last year. Probably on the run.
  • They are frequently seen along Johnston Creek. One killed all my chickens in 10 minutes flat.
  • I have seen a fox about 5 weeks ago at the end of Annandale St close to the Light Rail.

So, it seems certain that there is at least one fox in Glebe. Our Environment Subcommittee is looking in to this matter to see what action the Society can take.