A wily coyote

Mark Steele of Charlottetown couldn’t believe his eyes when he looked out the back window around noon on Monday.

At first glance, he thought it was a fox running through his backyard, but he quickly realized it was a coyote.

It seemed rather odd to him that he would have noticed a coyote in his yard, considering he lives in the Brighton neighbourhood of the capital.

“I looked again and in a panic grabbed my phone to try and get a picture (before he disappeared),’’ Steele said. “Sure enough, the thing showed up again 10 seconds later and I had my phone in my hands and was able to get a picture.’’

Still, it hadn’t sunk in. He kept waiting for someone to report their dog missing. It just didn’t seem real.

“First time I’ve seen one in town. We lived out in Wheatley River for years, so you’re used to hearing them and seeing them all the time out there (but) first time in town.’’

Chuck Gallison, wildlife officer for the province’s fish and wildlife division, said it’s much more common than people think.

“Everybody thinks it is (rare), but it really isn’t,’’ Gallison said. “We’ve had coyotes down in Brighton before; we’ve had coyotes down by Charlottetown Rural (High School) before. They come across on the ice from York Point because there’s a number of farms over there – chicken farms and beef farms. They come across the ice; they see the lights.’’

There’s also one wandering around the Fox Meadow golf course in Stratford. Basically, it’s mating season. Gallison said the coyotes that make their way into the urban environment typically are wandering or juvenile males, the inquisitive type. They come over for a while and go back home, posing no threat. “Nobody should get too up in arms. We never say never in the wildlife world . . . but in P.E.I. history we’ve never had anybody bitten by a coyote. But we can go down to the humane society and have had lots of people bitten by dogs.’’ Gallison said the urban coyote visitors are in an area they’re not used to being in and are more afraid of anything they come in contact with.

“He’s just trying to get out of this area of streets and lights and noises and find the shoreline and get back across the ice as quick as he can.’’

If anyone should encounter a coyote that stands its ground and growls at people, a call to fish and wildlife, city police or the RCMP would be in order.