Community Corner
Coyote Sightings Up, But May be Due to Deep Snow and Size
Lakewood Drive Resident Snaps Photos of Coyotes in Yard, Advises Residents to Take Precautions
Cathy Curley, of Lakewood Drive, said she hears coyotes howling in the wee hours of the morning and has seen them in her yard before, but coyotes that appeared in her yard on Wednesday seemed much bigger than ones she's seen before.
"These are the biggest I've ever seen," Curley said of two coyotes she took pictures of about 8 a.m. Wednesday. "The kids thought they were wolves because they were so big."
Curley said residents in the town's Lake Hills, North Stratfield and Greenfield Hill neighborhoods also have heard coyotes howling in the wee hours, and she thinks residents ought to be aware of the coyotes' presence and exercise care when outdoors, particularly if they have young children or small dogs and cats. She thinks the coyotes may be becoming bolder.
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"A lot of people have dogs, cats and little kids, so it's definitely something to be aware of," she said.
Animal Control Officer Paul Miller said reports of coyote sightings are up, but he said that may be due to the deep snow, which causes coyotes to seek out roads and driveways, and the fact that coyotes appear much larger than they have in the past. He said residents who spotted a smaller coyote in the past may not have bothered to report it, but they're now reporting coyotes based on their size.
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"It doesn't seem like there's more incidents involving coyotes, but there's definitely more sightings," Miller said Friday afternoon.
Some residents call the town's Animal Control Department and say they saw a wolf, but when Miller asks them to e-mail pictures they took, the pictures depict a large coyote.
Eastern coyotes are larger than western coyotes and that may explain why coyotes appear larger. Western coyotes are typically around 35 pounds, while eastern coyotes can top 50 pounds, Miller said. A representative at the state Department of Environmental Protection's Wildlife Division wasn't available Friday afternoon to comment on whether both eastern and western coyotes are in Fairfield.
Miller said coyotes are omnivores and will eat almost anything, including dog food, cat food, birdseed and garbage that's left outside. "People leave a trail of food no matter how careful we are...and the coyotes know that," he said.
The town used to bury dead deer at the town dump on One Rod Highway, and coyotes, who could smell the deer, would try to dig them up, even when the deer were buried 10 feet. The town doesn't do that anymore, instead taking deer carcasses to a hopper that's brought to Bridgeport for incineration, Miller said.
Miller said residents can take precautions against coyotes by not leaving food outside and by staying with their dogs when the dogs are outside. He said he's not aware of an instance of a coyote attacking a person in Fairfield and that the number of coyote attacks on cats or small dogs are rare and comparable to years past.
Coyote attacks on humans aren't unprecedented, however. Two girls, ages 3 and 6, were attacked by a coyote in separate incidents in Rye, N.Y. last summer and Miller said a woman walking out of McDonald's in Connecticut with a bag of burgers a few years ago was bitten on the leg by a coyote, but the latter instance was partially due to McDonald's employees feeding the coyote, who came to view the area as both a food source and his territory, Miller said. The McDonald's was in Branford.
To view information on the Animal Control Department's website about coyotes and tips on preventing conflicts with them, click here and here.
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