Google battling 'fox infestation' on roof of £1B London office

Summary

It is intended to be an ultra-modern central London office that will serve Google for decades, but the new £1bn headquarters is beset by one of humanity’s oldest-known pests: foxes.The canines have taken over the rooftop garden of the new “landscraper” in King’s Cross and had an impact on construction – although the company stressed it was “minimal”.The infestation, first reported by the newsletter London Centric, was confirmed by sources familiar with the construction. One told the Guardian it had been a rolling three-year saga and said some foxes had begun to dig burrows in the perfectly manicured grounds.“There’s a little hole in the garden where one lives,” they said. “We’ve seen her all around the building – one second she’s on the fifth floor, the next she’s on the garden floor. No one has been able to catch her.”Others said they have seen fox poo on the grounds of the Thomas Heatherwick-designed building.The office’s rooftop garden is believed to house 40,000 tonnes of soil and 250 trees. Photograph: Tim Robberts/Getty ImagesMosh Latifi, a co-director of the London-based pest control firm EcoCare, said they could be living off rats.“Foxes thrive quite well on rodents – we don’t live more than three metres away from the nearest rat,” he said, adding that he had also witnessed foxes in building sites scouring for food left behind by workers.Leaky pipes, or even generous handouts from local businesses, could be sustaining the skulk, according to another London pest control expert, who did not wish to be named. “London is a big playground for foxes – they will go absolutely anywhere,” they said.A Google spokesperson said: “Fox sightings at construction sites are pretty common, and our King’s Cross development is no exception. While foxes have been occasionally spotted at the site, their appearances have been brief and have had minimal impact on the ongoing construction.”According to a search using the firm’s own search engine, the best way to get rid of foxes is ...