As mysteriously as he disappeared last week, Fergus the Fox is back.
Local artist Alex Witcombe, who created the popular sculpture at the Beaver Lodge Lands out of driftwood, reported on social media Wednesday that the sculpture showed up that morning at the parking lot.
“Such a mystery,” Witcome said with a laugh.
When asked if he thought the culprit might have returned Fergus following an attack of remorse, Witcombe said he thought it was more likely that the person learned from another social media post that CCTV footage existed from a nearby surveillance camera at the trail head.
Witcombe did not know this until he was inspecting the area following Fergus’s disapperance.
”I noticed there’s cameras there, and there’s a number to call,” he said.
Witcombe contacted the number about possible footage and was told he would probably have to file a police report to get access to the video.
“I didn’t actually get it because we didn’t need to,” he said.
In the meantime, the sculpture mysteriously reappeared at the Beaver Lodge Lands. Someone saw Fergus in the parking lot and called the local radio station. Witcombe heard the news while he was on his way to work in Courtenay during the morning, but he realized he had to turn around to come back to get the fox.
“I was about an hour late for work,” he said.
Fergus will be in a new secret hiding spot in the forest. Witcombe realized one downside to the area around the log that was Fergus’s previous home was that, with so many visitors coming to see the fox, nearby foliage was getting trampled. Witcombe decided he should find the fox a new den.
“I’m going to put him somewhere else,” he said. “It can be ‘find the fox’ all over again. I might make him a friend too. I think I might make two foxes actually, so they can sit side by side.”