Montreal sets up coyote hotline
Hundreds of sightings reported in last nine months
After almost 400 reported sightings of coyotes on the island of Montreal over the past nine months, authorities announced on Tuesday a new hotline citizens can use if they spot the wild animals, who continue to pose risks to public safety.
Montreal joins several other Canadian cities, such as Toronto, Vancouver and Niagara Falls, that have set up hotlines and put in place other measures to deal with coyotes who inhabit urban environments.
Emilie Thuillier, a Montreal borough mayor and the city’s spokesperson on the coyote issue, said the presence of the animals in residential areas needs to be taken seriously.
Aside from the new hotline that goes into service today, the city formed a committee that is organizing information sessions about coyotes, patrols in various urban parks and doorto-door visits.
There have been 379 sightings on the island of Montreal since last June, Thuillier said, but added there is no indication how many different coyotes might be involved.
If there are 10 reported sightings in one day, it is usually the same coyote that’s been seen, Thuillier explained.
“We know that there have been coyotes in Montreal for the past 40 years and particularly in the city’s large parks,” she said. “They usually wander along railway tracks that pass through residential areas.”
She said coyotes are generally afraid of humans and are aggressive in only a few cases, but it’s unclear what triggers the wild animals to attack.