This Fox Just Took an Inadvertent Transatlantic Trip

This stowaway truly was sly as a fox. A red fox somehow slipped onto a cargo ship that was traveling from Southampton, England, to New York, where the animal is now in the Bronx Zoo's care. The zoo said on Wednesday that the 11-pound male fox appears healthy after early examinations, per the AP. "He seems to be settling in well," Keith Lovett, the zoo's director of animal programs, said by phone. "It's gone through a lot."

It's not clear how the animal got on the ship full of automobiles, which left Southampton on Feb. 4, according to the zoo. The ship arrived Feb. 18 at the Port of New York and New Jersey, and officials brought the fox to the zoo the next day. He's estimated to be 2 years old. Zoo representatives weren't sure how or when the fox was discovered. Messages seeking those details were sent to government agencies involved with the port.

The species, formally named Vulpes vulpes, is widespread in Europe, Asia, North America, and parts of Africa. A long-term home for this fox will be found once he clears some more health screening. For now, he's hunkered down in the zoo's veterinary center. Being an omnivore, he's getting a diet of produce, proteins, and some biscuit-like items.