West Virginia daily

Coyote sightings grow in Livonia - 05/22/05 -- Howling at the moon has become more than just a figure of speech, up and down Merriman.

There are coyotes here, and folks are a bit concerned.

"I saw one last year, spring time, near Seven Mile going north toward Eight Mile," said Ken Welsby. "And a couple of weeks ago, on Sunday morning, I sent the dog out and I saw one trotting by my fence line, near Rotary Park. My dog's a Shelty (Shetland sheepdog). He's not really big, and he's not a match for a coyote."

City and state officials say it is difficult to know whether the coyote population is burgeoning, or if people are just noticing them more because word is circulating that the coyotes are around. But Welsby, his wife Lynne Schneider, and other residents in and around Rotary Park and near the creeks called Bell Branch and Tarabusi say the critters are increasingly familiar.

They make themselves right at home, too, residents say, sorting through trash and eating rabbits and the other little animals that once seemed to comprise all of the wildlife in this particular patch of suburbia. What's worse: Coyotes promenade through neighborhoods with what seems like little fear of humans.

"I was born in West Virginia, and I've done a lot of walking in the woods," said Schneider, who has twice seen coyotes in recent weeks. "I have come up against a lot of things out there in my life. But I don't think I'll be walking over by the big woods here anytime soon, and I've been doing it for years and years. Those coyotes are big."

As things stand, residents should expect the coyotes to be with them for some time. In essence, they were here first and it is entirely possible, experts say, that the ever-sprawling population of Metro Detroit is shrinking their habitat, forcing them to appear in places people would never expect to see them.

Like the bus stop at Merriman and Vargo, where residents say they have seen a coyote.

City Public Services officials say they are collecting reports of coyotes and were trapping them with snare traps in January and February. But it is not a strategy aimed at eliminating coyotes.

"We feel that we're not involved in an eradication program," said Robert Beckley, director of public works. "It's just not possible in a metropolitan area."

City officials don't believe that there has been major growth in the local coyote population. The Department of Natural Resources says people are just coming into more frequent contact with them.

You can reach Gregg Krupa at (734) 462-2296 or gkrupa@detnews.com .

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