Residents alarmed after spotting wild predators in quiet neighborhood: 'An unusual event'

One Chicagoland resident was greeted by a surprise encounter with a predator roaming a quiet residential neighborhood. 

They took to the r/chicago community to share their experience. 

What's happening?

"There's two large-ish coyotes running up and down Greenview Ave near Wrightwood Park this morning. They don't seem to be aggressive but they're sprinting in and out of alleys, the road, and on sidewalks," noted the original poster. 

In the post, the Redditor uploaded a handful of pictures showing one of the coyotes crossing the street. While the close encounter ended without any injuries, it raised a number of questions about the animal's presence. 

"I've lived in this area for many years and posted this because it was an unusual event in the neighborhood," added the original poster in a comment. 

Why is the recent coyote sighting in Chicago important?

According to the Urban Coyote Research Project, coyotes are common throughout the Chicago area. Despite the region's population of more than 9 million people, coyotes rarely approach humans. 

While coyotes are considered predators, they are well-versed in adapting to various environments to survive. This includes venturing around urban centers in search of easy-to-access food. Coyotes have even been noted for helping to control the region's rodent, deer, and Canada geese populations.  

Although attacks are very rare, coyotes have made headlines for biting humans in the Chicago area in the recent past. In January 2020, USA Today reported on an incident involving a coyote biting a young child multiple times in the city's North Side. Just hours later, a second person reported being bitten by a coyote as well.   

What's being done about coyotes around the Chicagoland area?

To better understand the movements of the coyote population and stay on top of the animals' behavior, UCRP researchers have continued to tag and collar hundreds of coyotes throughout the region.  

"The Cook County Coyote Project researchers have tagged over 1,000 coyotes and radio-collared over 440 so far, making this the largest urban study of coyotes in the world," the project wrote. 

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While most instances of human-wildlife interactions in metropolitan areas indicate the potential loss of both habitat and food sources for a species, researchers from the UCRP note that coyotes have become accustomed to sharing a space with humans. 

"Although this study is focused in Cook County, Illinois, what we have learned about coyotes and people living together are indicative of many metropolitan areas," added the UCRP.

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