Recently there have been coyote sighting on the golf courses in New York City. This may seem strange to you, and it does to the people of New York. People have become accustom to seeing these stray dogs all around the city. The coyotes have been kicked out of their homes, and are now migrating into ours. Why would they complain they get free food from all the garbage around the city. They haven’t just adapted to the New Yorker life style, but you can find coyotes all around the United States and Canada. They have migrated like wild fire since the early 1900's (Ketcham 2010).
It may seem strange that the coyotes would be found mainly around a golf course. They might be staying due to the small creatures that are easy targets (Ketcham 2010). It could also be due to the nature like surroundings, being compared to the rest of the city. Either way the coyotes have made it clear that they are now a part of the New York society, along with others. The coyotes have adapted to where they are now living we can see the difference in the western and the eastern coyote. Eastern coyotes tend to be bigger in size, and more muscular to compete with their relative the wolf (Ketcham 2010). Whereas the western coyote is smaller in size weighing in around 30 pounds and tending to look like a fat fox (Ketcham 2010).
Christopher Ketcham did a little study on the migration of the coyotes in New York City but did not have much success in the beginning. He would go around searching for coyotes and some of the golfers would snicker at him "Saw more of your little friends just the other day"(Ketcham 2010). Despite the discouragement from the golfers, Ketcham found a Wildlife biologist in New York City parks department named Dave Kunstler to work with. They would search for the coyotes and discover what they were up to. Little success did Ketcham and Kunstler have, they felt as though they were being stalked more than being the stalkers. The coyotes tended to have a stalker impression on some of the golfers. One man had a coyote follow him while riding in the golf cart. When he got out the coyote would back off, when he got in it would come forward. The coyote would run alongside the cart, and when it stops so did the coyote. He would just stare at the golfers as they teed off, waiting for them to move again (Ketcham 2010).
So far the coyotes have not been much of a nuisance, even though they are thought of as being pests. Some people fear for their small animals keeping them inside so they don’t get snatched up by the coyotes. Others let the coyotes be, living beside them peacefully. One lady stopped to pick up a stray injured pup, brought it home only to discover it was actually a coyote. She brought it up just like she would any other dog, but once it became of age it tended towards its wild side. The lady was forced to free the animal from her home, as it was destroying it from its wild instincts (Ketcham 2010). There have always been stories of how people would bring home wild animals and bring them up to try and tame them. The animal instinct would always come out in the end, like it needed to be free.
By taking over the coyotes land and homes we have lead them into our own cities and homes. This has not only happened with coyotes but with many other creatures that have been forced to move due to human development. This is an environmental issue that many creatures are being forced to migrate, or have become extinct due to human impact. Some people can’t see what’s right in front of them, and that is that we are causing all of this to happen. We are forcing these creatures to move into our cities and into our homes. They don’t have a place to live and just decide to come and invade our homes; they are forced into migration so that we can have bigger and better homes. What can be done about this is the main question, how can we help the animals, and give them back their space, but still have enough space for us.
Resource:
Ketcham, Christopher. "New Dog in Town." Orion Magazine. Orion Magazine, 10/2010. Web. 13 Oct 2010.
It may seem strange that the coyotes would be found mainly around a golf course. They might be staying due to the small creatures that are easy targets (Ketcham 2010). It could also be due to the nature like surroundings, being compared to the rest of the city. Either way the coyotes have made it clear that they are now a part of the New York society, along with others. The coyotes have adapted to where they are now living we can see the difference in the western and the eastern coyote. Eastern coyotes tend to be bigger in size, and more muscular to compete with their relative the wolf (Ketcham 2010). Whereas the western coyote is smaller in size weighing in around 30 pounds and tending to look like a fat fox (Ketcham 2010).
Christopher Ketcham did a little study on the migration of the coyotes in New York City but did not have much success in the beginning. He would go around searching for coyotes and some of the golfers would snicker at him "Saw more of your little friends just the other day"(Ketcham 2010). Despite the discouragement from the golfers, Ketcham found a Wildlife biologist in New York City parks department named Dave Kunstler to work with. They would search for the coyotes and discover what they were up to. Little success did Ketcham and Kunstler have, they felt as though they were being stalked more than being the stalkers. The coyotes tended to have a stalker impression on some of the golfers. One man had a coyote follow him while riding in the golf cart. When he got out the coyote would back off, when he got in it would come forward. The coyote would run alongside the cart, and when it stops so did the coyote. He would just stare at the golfers as they teed off, waiting for them to move again (Ketcham 2010).
So far the coyotes have not been much of a nuisance, even though they are thought of as being pests. Some people fear for their small animals keeping them inside so they don’t get snatched up by the coyotes. Others let the coyotes be, living beside them peacefully. One lady stopped to pick up a stray injured pup, brought it home only to discover it was actually a coyote. She brought it up just like she would any other dog, but once it became of age it tended towards its wild side. The lady was forced to free the animal from her home, as it was destroying it from its wild instincts (Ketcham 2010). There have always been stories of how people would bring home wild animals and bring them up to try and tame them. The animal instinct would always come out in the end, like it needed to be free.
By taking over the coyotes land and homes we have lead them into our own cities and homes. This has not only happened with coyotes but with many other creatures that have been forced to move due to human development. This is an environmental issue that many creatures are being forced to migrate, or have become extinct due to human impact. Some people can’t see what’s right in front of them, and that is that we are causing all of this to happen. We are forcing these creatures to move into our cities and into our homes. They don’t have a place to live and just decide to come and invade our homes; they are forced into migration so that we can have bigger and better homes. What can be done about this is the main question, how can we help the animals, and give them back their space, but still have enough space for us.
Resource:
Ketcham, Christopher. "New Dog in Town." Orion Magazine. Orion Magazine, 10/2010. Web. 13 Oct 2010.
Picture credit:
advocacy.britannica.com
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