🦅 Gyrfalcon vs Red fox 🦊
The red fox is about twice as long as the gyrfalcon. The red fox weighs about 3 times as much as the gyrfalcon.
Getting the animals ready…
| Row | 🦅 Gyrfalcon | 🦊 Red fox |
|---|---|---|
| Size The red fox is about twice as long as the gyrfalcon. | 21 to 22 in53 to 56 cm1 | 3.6 ft1.1 m2 |
| Top speed Neither has a checked number yet. | no checked number yet | no checked number yet |
| Weight The red fox weighs about 3 times as much as the gyrfalcon. | 1.8 to 4.6 lb800 g to 2.1 kg1 | 9 to 11 lb4.1 to 5 kg3 |
| Lives The gyrfalcon usually lives about 4 times as long as the red fox. | 14 years14 years1 | 3 to 4 years3 to 4 years4 |
| Eats The gyrfalcon eats meat; the red fox eats plants and animals. | ptarmigan, Arctic ground squirrels and Arctic hares, and other small mammals and birds | mice, rabbits, birds, insects, fruit and berries |
| Lives in They live in different kinds of places, so they would hardly ever meet. | mostly Arctic tundra, far from the northern forests | most of the Northern Hemisphere, from forests and farms to city parks |
Which one? Gyrfalcon or red fox
🏁 Who would win the race?
We don't have a checked top speed for the gyrfalcon or the red fox yet, so there is no race.
We only race. Real animals mostly avoid each other. A race is the only fair contest: who reaches the tree first, by top speed. Our face-off books compare real numbers, and nobody gets hurt.
10 things to know about Gyrfalcon vs Red fox
- The gyrfalcon: A big falcon that lives on the northern tundra.
- The red fox: A red fox can hear a mouse squeaking under deep snow.
- They are different kinds of animal. The gyrfalcon is a bird, so it has feathers and lays eggs; the red fox is a mammal, so it breathes air with lungs and feeds its babies milk.
- The red fox is about twice as long as the gyrfalcon: 2 against 1.
- The red fox weighs about 3 times as much as the gyrfalcon. That is 1 for the gyrfalcon and 3 for the red fox.
- The gyrfalcon usually lives about 4 times as long as the red fox. Usual lifespans: 1 for the gyrfalcon and 4 for the red fox.
- The gyrfalcon eats ptarmigan, Arctic ground squirrels and Arctic hares, and other small mammals and birds. The red fox eats mice, rabbits, birds, insects, fruit and berries.
- The gyrfalcon lives in mostly Arctic tundra, far from the northern forests. The red fox lives in most of the Northern Hemisphere, from forests and farms to city parks. They live in different kinds of places, so they would hardly ever meet.
- The gyrfalcon: doing fine (Least Concern on the IUCN Red List). 5
- The red fox: doing fine (Least Concern on the IUCN Red List). 6
Wow facts
🦅 Gyrfalcon
- A gyrfalcon nests on the Arctic tundra.
- Female gyrfalcons are bigger than males.
- Most of its food is ptarmigan, a plump northern bird.
🦊 Red fox
- A red fox has pupils shaped like slits, like a cat's.
- Red fox kits are born with brownish-gray fur, and the red coat comes later.
- Red foxes live in cities, forests, farms and even deserts.
Questions kids ask about Gyrfalcon and Red fox
Which is bigger, gyrfalcon or red fox?
The red fox is about twice as long as the gyrfalcon: 2 against 1.
Which is heavier, gyrfalcon or red fox?
The red fox weighs about 3 times as much as the gyrfalcon. That is 1 for the gyrfalcon and 3 for the red fox.
Which lives longer, gyrfalcon or red fox?
The gyrfalcon usually lives about 4 times as long as the red fox. Usual lifespans: 1 for the gyrfalcon and 4 for the red fox.
What do gyrfalcon and red fox eat?
The gyrfalcon eats ptarmigan, Arctic ground squirrels and Arctic hares, and other small mammals and birds. The red fox eats mice, rabbits, birds, insects, fruit and berries.
Where do gyrfalcon and red fox live?
The gyrfalcon lives in mostly Arctic tundra, far from the northern forests. The red fox lives in most of the Northern Hemisphere, from forests and farms to city parks. They live in different kinds of places, so they would hardly ever meet.
Who would win, gyrfalcon or red fox?
We never show fights, because a fight is not a fair way to compare animals. They live in different kinds of places, so they would hardly ever meet. What we can compare is how big, how heavy, how fast, how long they live and what they eat, as above.
📤 Share this pair
The link carries only the two animals’ names: peabody.kids/animals/compare/gyrfalcon-vs-red-fox
Where these numbers come from
- University of Michigan Museum of Zoology, Animal Diversity Web: Falco rusticolus (gyrfalcon), checked 10 November 2026.
- National Park Service, Yellowstone, checked 30 October 2026.
- National Park Service (The Clever Red Fox), checked 30 October 2026.
- USDA Forest Service, Fire Effects Information System, checked 30 October 2026.
- Wikidata, from the IUCN Red List, checked 10 November 2026.
- Wikidata, from the IUCN Red List, checked 30 October 2026.