Cheeky fox nips at another in playful pics snapped in the capital

See more Daily Mail on Google - save us as a Preferred Source Published: 20:27 EDT, 31 August 2026 | Updated: 20:27 EDT, 31 August 2026 A mischievous young fox has been caught on camera playfully nipping a companion's tail in the heart of London.Photographer Izzy Davis captured the moment as a pair of urban foxes roughhoused in a cemetery in central London.The youngster was seen creeping up behind the other fox before cheekily clamping its teeth around its friend's tail.But the playful ambush prompted an immediate response, with the startled fox letting out a loud squeal to fend off its cheeky attacker.Ms Davis, a 28-year-old small animal vet from Wantage, Oxfordshire, had a feeling something was about to happen when she noticed one fox fixating on the other.She said: 'I spotted this fox looking intentionally at the other fox, so I had an inkling that something was about to happen when I pointed my camera in that direction.'There are an estimated 10,000 foxes across London, according to the London Wildlife Trust. Red foxes are believed to have been in Britain for around 330,000 years. Photographer Izzy Davis captured the amusing moment as a pair of urban foxes roughhoused in a cemetery in central London The youngster was seen creeping up behind the other fox before cheekily clamping its teeth around its companion's tailThe red fox has conquered everything from remote forests and farmland to the suburbs and city centres, where it now thrives on a diet of discarded takeaways and overflowing wheelie bins.But experts say urban life is transforming foxes in evolutionary ways, according to charity Horniman Museum & Gardens.Unlike rural foxes, which spend their days hunting rodents, insects and worms, city foxes have become bold scavengers, prowling streets and gardens. Studies have even found that urban foxes have shorter snouts than those living in the countryside, a change thought to be linked to their reliance on scavenged food rather than prey they must track down and kill.Meanwhile, scientists believe city life may be making foxes smarter.Modern urban environments force the animals to solve back-to-back challenges, from dodging traffic and navigating busy neighbourhoods to keeping track of places they may find food.To survive, foxes must remember exactly which restaurants throw out scraps, which households leave pet food outdoors, and even which streets put their bins out on particular days.Researchers say these mental challenges could be driving changes in foxes' brains, raising the prospect that Britain's most notorious urban pest is becoming more intelligent and adaptable.