Foxes are omnivores, and most of their diet is small animals (especially rodents and rabbits) plus a good amount of insects, worms, and seasonal fruits like berries.

Quick Scoop: What Do Foxes Eat?

Main menu: meat

Wild foxes are expert small-animal hunters.

They commonly eat:

  • Rodents (mice, rats, voles, sometimes squirrels).
  • Rabbits and hares (a big diet staple in many rural areas).
  • Small birds and ground‑nesting birds, and sometimes poultry if available.
  • Frogs and other amphibians.
  • Lizards and small snakes in some regions.
  • Insects and invertebrates like beetles, worms, maggots, crane flies, and other bugs.
  • Carrion (already-dead animals) when they find it.

They are very opportunistic, so they’ll take almost any small animal that is easy to catch and safe to eat.

Side dishes: plants and fruit

Foxes don’t live on meat alone; they’re true omnivores.

They also eat:

  • Berries (blackberries, blueberries, raspberries, etc.), especially in autumn.
  • Other fruits like apples, plums, cherries, grapes, figs, and similar wild or cultivated fruits.
  • Some vegetables, grains, and crops such as corn or barley when available.
  • Nuts and acorns in some areas.

These plant foods help fill in when prey is scarce and also help with seed dispersal in the ecosystem.

City vs countryside

What foxes eat shifts a bit depending on where they live.

  • Rural foxes
    • More natural prey: rodents, rabbits, birds, frogs, earthworms.
* Seasonal fruits and berries from hedgerows and woodland.
  • Urban foxes
    • Still hunt rats, mice, pigeons, and dig for worms.
* Scavenge human food waste from bins and may eat pet food left outside.

A quick seasonal snapshot

Because foxes are so adaptable, their menu changes through the year.

  • Spring–summer: more small mammals, birds, and insects when young prey and bugs are abundant.
  • Autumn: big bump in berries and fruit as they fatten up for colder months.
  • Winter: more scavenging (carrion, scraps) and hardy fruits that are still available.

Bottom note: Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.