London's foxes pictured in surprising places

London has an estimated 10,000 foxes. Credit: Reuters

Hackney Council have postponed plans to cull foxes in one of their parks after the public and animal rights groups expressed their outrage.

Over at the ITV London News Facebook page, we asked readers to submit their favourite pictures of foxes in odd places that they managed to capture - with some surprising results.

Foxes first moved into cities such as Bristol and London during the 40s, and populations tend to be higher in urban areas than rural areas.

During the 1990s, a parasitic disease called sacroptic mange spread across England, Scotland and Wales, caused a decline in numbers.

A fox on a trampoline spotted in Hackney. Credit: Anna Nolan.

One of the reasons foxes are so adaptable is because of their varied eating habits - they eat virtually anything they come across.

Foxes may also contribute to the city by helping to keep the rodent problem under control - they eat a lot of rats.

Fox populations are, according to the RSPCA , fairly self-regulating, meaning culls might not be the best option.

Wendy Storey's cat appears to get on well with her fox friend. Credit: Wendy Storey.

It is illegal to use poisoned bait to kill foxes because of the risk of poisoning other species, but a number of other methods are still legal.

This young fox was spotted outside Shirley Molloy's back door. Credit: Shirley Molloy.

The RSPCA says, apart from being costly and controversial, culling foxes is ineffective. Killing can result in less competition and increased breeding success for the remainder.

Anne Lane spotted this fox eyeing up her cat's food. Credit: Anne Lane.

While the maximum life expectancy for a fox is about 14 years, in urban areas it is about two years.

Read: Hackney Council to postpone fox cull amid concerns