Foxes are unexpected visitors at Google’s new U.K. headquarters

London – The new headquarters of the United Kingdom of Google in King’s Cross Neighbourhood in London has not yet opened its doors, but this has already attracted the unexpected attention of the inhabitants.

Local foxes, that is to say.

The building, which is under construction, was nicknamed the “landscraper” because it extends over 1,082 feet wide and 11 floors.

Created by British designer Thomas Heatherwick, it would be completed later this year and will cost the technology giant up to 1 billion pounds Sterling ($ 1.3 billion). Construction started in 2017. It should possibly house up to 7,000 Google employees.

For the moment, however, some of the most frequent visitors could be the foxes who have dug burrows in the well -maintained terrain and leaving their excrement on the garden on the roof of almost 1000 feet long.

“Renard’s observations on construction sites are quite common, and the cross development of our king is no exception,” Google spokesperson told NBC News. But, the person added: “Although the foxes were sometimes spotted on the site, their appearances were brief and had a minimum impact on current construction.”

NBC News spoke to nearly two dozen construction workers on the construction site, where a noise cacophony of drilling and hammering filled the streets while dust dispersed in the air. But when they were asked if they had seen foxes, most refused to comment, citing non-disclosure agreements.

A worker, who asked for anonymity due to the NDA, told NBC News: “Personally, I have not seen, but there are so many entries open to the building that I would not be surprised if she had entered inside.”

However, Kareen Mascerenhas, 25, who works in a store just opposite the construction site, said that she had spotted a fox last winter. “I closed the store when I saw a fair pass on this side and there,” she said, pointing towards the construction of Google.

But all the observations of the bushy vulpines do not feel rare or unique in a city where the number of foxes rises between 10,000 and 15,000, representing nearly 16 foxes per Mile Carré.

Throughout the country, their population reflected and flows according to the season, from 150,000 in winter to around 400,000 during the CUB season, according to Terry Woods, which founded the Fox-A-Gon moving company, which pleads for human treatment of animals.

For decades, the foxes have also captured the British imagination, appearing as the sneaky character M. Tod in the novels of Beatrix Potter, and in “Fantastic Mr. Fox” by Roald Dahl. And more recently, we even served as a memorable symbol for the “hot priest” in the successful television show “Fleabag” by Phoebe Waller-Bridge.

Although they are often daringly seen in the sidewalks and searches through residential bins, the foxes have also excited strong reactions from spectators, ranging from worship to pure and simple resentment.

“They may seem cuddled and romantic, but the foxes are also a pest and a threat, especially in our cities,” said former British Prime Minister Boris Johnson in BBC News in 2013, then as mayor of London, when a fox horrified the British public after having bitten a baby’s finger.

For years, the foxes have perfectly hidden their identity as the main culprits behind hundreds of cat mutilations in the suburbs of southern London in Croydon, where macabre carcasses have scattered in the streets and backwards lead the residents in distress to suspect that a disturbed cat killer was in freedom until the police were going to do what was going on in 2018.

While some residents cherish their presence, in the hope of charming optically contacted creatures trying to feed them, a series of British laws on fauna also gives Foxes protection and freedom to browse the cities of the United Kingdom.

“The foxes are very popular in this region; they are practically everywhere,” said Ode Tomitoba, 31, who works at King’s Cross Visitors Center.

For Hanei Mokenen, 23, who manages a restaurant in King’s Cross, the news of the last fox incursion came with a Tiktok video.

“It’s King’s Cross, anything can happen here,” he said about the lively commercial district of the center of London, adding that he had sometimes seen a fox run in the region.

But their stealth around the giant Google building had nevertheless taken Mokenen by surprise. “How did the devil come inside? Security is strong in this area; this is not a place where you can just walk,” he said.

The new Foxes house in Google’s offices has not been the first time that animals have been comfortable in London skyscrapers. In 2011, a fox called Romeo was discovered living in the sparkle, surviving on the remains of food left by construction workers.

“This is a fairly common event with such adaptable creatures,” said Woods from Fox-A-Gon, who helped to withdraw Romeo from the site by capturing it safely and relaxing it in the urban jungle.

“They are such an adaptable animal that they can survive almost anywhere and overcome great difficulties,” he added.