Here in the remote wilderness of central Newcastle (less than a mile from the city centre), this can be a disturbing time of year; since the night is often shattered, and I am started from sleep, by blood-curdling howls that sound exactly as if somebody (or some-thing) was being painfully murdered - except that it goes on and on...
It is, of course, the urban fox; and this is the mating season.
To get some idea of the sound, try these videos... But I have to say, our foxes sound a lot scarier than any of these examples.
It truly is 'the call of the wild' - and to hear this in the early hours of the morning through the open window, sounding near and loud, is suddenly to be projected mentally into a primal situation; as if I was alone in the middle of nowhere.
