It’s additionally not recognized why the coyote has come. “We are able to’t say undoubtedly it’s dwelling in Central Park,” Mr. Simon mentioned. “It may be spending time” there and dwelling close by.
How does a coyote get into Central Park, anyway?
“It walks there,” mentioned Crystal Howard, a spokeswoman for the Parks Division, speculating that it got here from one other a part of the town the place coyotes have been reported.
Nonetheless, that will require the animal to cross a number of Manhattan streets.
Coyotes are nocturnal animals and are adept at avoiding folks, Mr. Simon mentioned. This coyote, he added, might have “simply as simply slinked by way of backyards” earlier than bolting down a road and into the park.
I then requested Katie Stennes, a Park Slope resident who works because the packages and communication supervisor at Mission Coyote — a distinct group than the Gotham Coyote Mission — about how the animal obtained to Central Park. (Her group helps inform the Parks Division about coyotes.)
“I assume simply strolling alongside the road,” she mentioned.
If a coyote could be very near you …
It’s best to attempt to keep at the very least 150 toes away from a coyote, however if you happen to’re a lot nearer, don’t panic.
“Act large and loud,” Ms. Stennes mentioned, to remind it that you just’re not its good friend.
“Coexisting with coyotes is fairly straightforward,” she added. Simply don’t feed them, and choose up your trash.
When you kill a coyote …
Killing a coyote would possibly assist improve the inhabitants of this pack animal, Ms. Stennes mentioned.
Which may sound counterintuitive, however she defined: “Normally, solely the alpha female and male breed. However if you happen to kill considered one of them, that breaks up the pack.” When a pack breaks up, its former members unfold out, searching for meals and mates.