Swiper no swiping! Fox pups spotted stealing golf balls at Michigan course

A family of foxes has apparently occasionally been swiping golf balls and taking them back to their den at Muskegon Community College's University Park Golf Course. Kurt HildweinKurt Hildwein

MUSKEGON, MI – Forget long grass, water or woods. Golfers at a small course in Muskegon have something else to blame when their ball goes missing.

Baby foxes!

"Golfers will blame anything when they lose their balls," Kurt Hildwein, who oversees the grounds and facilities at Muskegon Community College's University Park Golf Course, joked.

The family of foxes has apparently occasionally been swiping golf balls and taking them back to their den. It's behavior that has many in West Michigan channeling "Dora The Explorer."

And while a popular Facebook post about the "mystery" says a "significant number" of balls have gone missing and that the foxes were determined to be the culprits after a "thorough investigation," Hildwein said the post is meant to be more of a humorous exaggeration of known fox activity.

In other words, the foxes have been spotted with golf balls, but they likely aren't actively searching the course for them.

One of their dens is located behind the course's driving range, so there's easy access to wayward golf balls, Hildwein said. Wildlife experts have also theorized that the foxes are likely mistaking the balls for eggs, which they are known to steal and stash.

The fox cubs are just one of many woodland species that roam the 9-hole course. Hildwein says he routinely sees baby skunks and baby groundhogs, as well as a family of hawks nesting on the grounds for the second-straight year.

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Using trail cameras, he's taken thousands of wildlife photos in the five years since he started working at the golf course.

"It's a suburban area, but since we have enough wooded land, it's packed full of animals that have become acclimated to humans," Hildwein said. They’re just so docile."

He reiterated that the foxes, and other animals on the course, aren't dangerous, but also reminded the public to keep their distance from them, their dens and other living areas out of respect for the animals.

Opened in 1968 and located across the street from the main MCC campus, the nine-hole course was designed by Bruce Matthews and features two different tee-off areas. The course is open seven days a week from April until October.

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