Our friend Frank Vicenti of the WILD DOG FOUNDATION commented on the Eastern Coyotes seen in the Bronx Park(NYC) last week---"The Coyotes use a natural greenway that wild animals like deer use to travel from Van Cortlandt Park through Woodlawn Cemetery and down into Bronx Park"...................."“They have been in New York for decades avoiding people and getting used to traffic,” Vincenti said. “They are having babies in New York City…they just aren't paying taxes"

http://nydn.us/1qxfaJG

Coyote seen in the Bronx Wednesday, captured by photographer sitting in Bronx Park East

Coyote sighting comes after a fisher, an oversized member of the weasel family, was spotted in University Heights last week.

BY PETE BARRETT 

 

NEW YORK DAILY NEWS

 

Wednesday, June 25, 2014, 9:04 PM

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COURTESY OF JOSEPH MARTINEZWild coyote struts calmly through Bronx Park early Wednesday morning

A coyote spotted early Wednesday morning crossed the street from Bronx Park East, into Bronx Park and then circled Ben Abrams Playground before disappearing into the darkness.

Stargazer “Jupiter” Joe Martinez was sitting at the southwest corner of the park at 3:10 a.m., waiting for the sky to clear when a coyote passed 10 feet in front of him.

“I thought it was a dog at first, and then I saw its face and tail,” said Martinez, 42, who lives across the street.

The coyote sighting came on the heels of another wild animal finding in the Bronx. Last week, a fisher, an oversized member of the weasel family, was spotted near Bronx Community College in University Heights.

COURTESY OF JOSEPH MARTINEZWild coyote heads toward the jungle gym in Bronx Park early Wednesday morning.

“This is the most popular city in the world and this proves wildlife can coexist with it,” Wild Dog Foundation President Frank Vincenti told the Daily News on Wednesday.

Vincenti believes the coyote used a natural greenway that wild animals like deer use to travel from Van Cortlandt Park through Woodlawn Cemetery and down into Bronx Park.

Friends of Van Cortlandt Park Executive Director Christina Taylor wasn’t surprised to hear that a coyote was spotted in Bronx Park — where they are common, if rarely seen.

COURTESY OF JOSEPH MARTINEZThe same coyote is later seen heading toward Ben Abrams Playground.

“They’re usually out early in the morning and late in the evening so not a lot people see them,” said Taylor.

A Department of Environmental Conservation spokeswoman insisted coyotes are living within the city at low numbers.

At the southwest corner of Van Cortlandt Park, a statue of “Major the Coyote” commemorates the death of a female coyote killed crossing the Major Deegan Expressway in 1995.

DENIS SLATTERYA statue of "Major the Coyote" at the southwest corner of Van Cortlandt Park commemorates the death of a female coyote killed crossing the Major Deegan Expressway in 1995.

Named for the expressway that took her life, Major was the first Coyote spotted in New York City since 1946. Since then the population has grown — and so have the sightings.

“Coyotes are extremely adaptable and when there is no natural predator and there is sufficient food, the population is likely to increase,” said Dr. Pat Thomas, an associate director and general curator at the Bronx Zoo and a vice president of the Wildlife Conservation Society.

Despite three incidents in Westchester in 2010 — two involving children — coyote attacks are extremely rare.

“They have been in New York for decades avoiding people and getting used to traffic,” Vincenti said. “They are having babies in New York City…they just aren't paying taxes.”

Read more: http://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/wile-e-coyote-bronx-article-1.1844307#ixzz36NcqPSqZ