I think I have seen just about every wild mammal that occurs in our region somewhere inside the beltline during one of my frequent outings. Beaver, Rabbit, Deer, Opposum, Raccoon and Fox are all quite abundant, event in the urban core. The only one I have yet to meet in person is the Coyote. They first made the news headlines in 2009, when they were sighted at RDU. (“Sighted” being a euphemism for run over by an airplane.) More recently, I’ve seen reports of coyote sightings in University Park and Cameron Park, so they are now here.

To learn about Foxes and Coyotes in a safe setting, have a look at the Nature program at the Wilkerson Nature Preserve. It takes place on Saturday from 10:30a-12p, and as of this writing, there were still a few spots available. ($3 for ages 3-5, adult required to accompany, but free.)

Coyote by Lindenbaum, used under the CC BY license (All pups are cute, even coyotes.)