A gray fox kit licks its mother after nursing. Photographer Lisa Lacasse spent three days in June watching this fox family in Quechee, Vermont, as the six kits chased each other and played with pounces and leaps, practicing their hunting skills. Gray foxes have curved, semi-retractable claws that allow them to climb trees – both to forage for fruit and to evade predators – and they prefer habitat that includes a mix of forests, overgrown fields, and brushy edges.