Coyote roaming at Bentonville airport

BENTONVILLE — The geese have been run off from the Bentonville Municipal Airport, but there’s now a different kind of wildlife causing some concern: a coyote.

The coyote has been showing up occasionally at the airport and was last seen there about a month ago, said Robin Fields, the handler for Maverick, the airport’s goose-chasing dog.

The coyote isn’t afraid of aircraft noise or humans, which leads Fields to believe the animal could have rabies. It has been seen standing on the runway and in the grassy areas around the airport. Pilots have also seen the coyote from the air, Fields said.

The main concern is the coyote will get on the runway and be a danger to aircraft, said Debbie Griffin, city director of administration.

“Hopefully he’s moved on,” she said.

There are a couple of wooded areas west of the airport where the coyote could have come from, Fields said.

As many as three coyotes wandered onto airport property 2 ½ years ago when Fields started working there, but this coyote is the only one seen in the last year, he said.

Options for dealing with the animal are limited, Fields said. The city’s animal control department doesn’t have cages big enough to hold a coyote, he said. He also has left a message with the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission.

Types of wildlife associated with safety issues at airports include birds, mammals and reptiles, according to the Federal Aviation Administration. Birds make up 97% of the reported strikes, mammals about 3% and reptiles less than 1%, according to the FAA.

From 1990 to 2019, 1,210 civil aircraft were involved in collisions with deer, according to the FAA.

Drake Field in Fayetteville on occasion sees deer and coyotes on the property, said Jared M. Rabren, airport director.

“We have a wildlife mitigation program in place to help keep the majority of them at bay; however, some get through,” he said. “We’ve got a project coming up in 2023 to address some of our older wildlife fencing, which should push those numbers even lower.”

Alex English with Northwest Arkansas National Airport in Highfill said there are no problems with large animals like a coyote getting on the runway.

“We see deer around the property, but they tend to stay away from the noisy runway, and the runway is completely gated,” she said.

Coyotes are members of the canine family that includes wolves and foxes. They are native to Arkansas and can be found in all counties throughout the state. Coyotes usually weigh 25 to 35 pounds, according to the University of Arkansas’ Division of Agriculture Research and Extension.

According to the Game and Fish Commission, they are about the size of a small collie dog. They are reddish-gray and may appear to be a tall fox from a distance. A close encounter would reveal their yellow eyes and the typical black tip of their bushy tail. Coyotes are very intelligent with keen senses of sight, smell and hearing with a life span of 10 to 12 years.

While coyotes are typically nocturnal predators living in bushy habitats, they are also opportunistic feeders that may find their way into urban neighborhoods.