In the Japanese language, kitsune can mean both a regular Japanese fox, a divine fox, or a demon fox. They can be found all over Japan, and the history of the Japanese kitsune goes back to the beginning of Japan itself. Actually, there are 13 different types of kitsune. The thirteen different kinds of Kitsune each have their own element, including Heaven, Dark, Wind, Spirit, Fire, Earth, River, Ocean, Mountain, Forest, Thunder, Time and Sound. But what is a kitsune, and how do you know if you are dealing with a good or a bad Japanese fox?

You may already about these tricky kitsune in Japanese folklore, but there are many other youkai to learn about, like the bakenko and nekomata.

Basic Japanese Fox Abilities

Japanese kitsune are shapeshifters. The older a kitsune gets, the more its abilities increase. Myth had say that when a Japanese fox turns 100 years old, it can turn into a human. Kitsune can be either male or female. Usually, a mythical Japanese fox takes the form of young Japanese girls, beautiful women, and older men. In fact, there are many tales of Japanese kitsune transforming into beautiful women to trap powerful men. One of the Japanese fox’s most well-known kitsune abilities is kitsune-bi (狐火) or fox-fire. A red flame produced by a kitsune by either breathing or wagging its tail. A mythical Japanese fox uses this light to lure humans.

Kitsune can have as many as nine tails. When a kitsune gains its ninth tail, its fur becomes white or gold. With such powerful abilities, you may wonder how to kill a kitsune. Legends say that to kill a Japanese kitsune, you have to cut off all its tails.