It isn’t very often I sneak up on a fox but I was lucky enough to spot this one warming itself on a rock during one of my recent forays into Pondicherry Refuge.  I was about 100 feet away and the bright orange color of it’s fur caught my eye as I scanned the woods for bird life.   I shifted my footing a bit for a steady camera shot and unknowingly stepped on a branch, which announced my presence with a loud “CRACK”.  Naturally, the fox was instantly alerted but I was able to take this photo before it jumped down and seemed to melt away into the brush.  I regret disturbing it as I’m sure that rock was a warm spot to rest.  Having a telephoto lens on my camera generally enables me to get photos I can work from without needing to be right on top of what I’m trying to photograph.  Now if I can just learn to walk in the woods with a little more stealth…