West Seattle wildlife: Coyote sighting in Gatewood

| Coyotes | Gatewood | West Seattle news | Wildlife

It’s been a while since we added to the coyote-sighting archive (which you can browse here). But it’s a good occasion for a reminder that authorities urge education/coexistence – don’t call in a coyote and expect to have animal control come chase after it. But do consider keeping your pets inside. This morning’s report is from Sherrideth:

Just wanted to alert the neighborhood that there is a coyote in Gatewood. Saw it
run across SW Austin as I drove to work this morning at 6:10 (10/20).

She says the cross-street was 39th SW (here’s a map). If you haven’t seen the state’s Living With Wildlife coyote info page before – check it out here.

GretchenF October 20, 2009 (10:17 am)

Yesterday morning about 8:15 we had a coyote visit our front yard; sniffed around the lawn for a few minutes and then took off. We are at 49th & Raymond. Had not seen one for about a year.

lonelycrow October 20, 2009 (10:31 am)

Coyotes aren’t rare sightings anymore. There’s one probably having a siesta under your porch right now.

flowerpetal October 20, 2009 (10:34 am)

I guess these sightings should not be too surprising. Both are near significantly sized greenbelts.
I wonder how far from greenbelts coyotes wander.

WSB October 20, 2009 (10:40 am)

Lonelycrow, just for clarification, we know they’re not rare, and yet people are often surprised. Plus the awareness/coexistence info is important. So we share them when we get them. To date, we have only seen one firsthand, though we are very close to the greenbelt on the hillside over Lincoln Park and can certainly HEAR them often! – TR

Brian October 20, 2009 (10:47 am)

Check out the pets section on WSB… Ever wonder wear all those cats went?

We have a Coyote who frequents the fence line of our backyard and plays chase with the dogs up and down the line.

Cute critter.

sw October 20, 2009 (11:13 am)

Was he carrying a box labeled “ACME?”

Mike October 20, 2009 (12:05 pm)

They are more afraid of humans than anything, that’s why you typically don’t see them often. It’s getting colder, their food options are going to drop so they’ll be more likely to come out to find food than before.

Glad WSB is getting awareness out to those that never grew up with wildlife around them. Don’t need to be afraid, just need to be smart about things. Don’t leave out cat food, keep your pets indoors, cover your garbage with a heavy lid and secure it, etc… Same thing goes for Raccoons who love catfood and garbage, midnight bandits love garbage.

goodgraces October 20, 2009 (5:39 pm)

Never knew there was one up on Pigeon Hill until recently (but should have suspected it since the city’s largest contiguous green space is on 2 sides of the neighborhood). We live just down from Cooper school (new home to Pathfinder). The World’s Best Cat (ours) was killed by a coyote a month ago. A very kind neighbor found his body in the greenbelt and — because we had signs up everywhere looking for him — knew he was ours and contacted us.

That said — and believe me, it hurts more than you know to write those words — I am huge fan of urban wildlife and am glad the coyotes are coexisting with us. Just wish they’d killed some mean, antisocial, old cat, and not our wholly remarkable, 1-year-old guy.

WSB October 20, 2009 (6:02 pm)

GG, I am so sorry to hear about that. Thank you for still supporting the coexistence concept despite the pain of personal loss. This is one small reason why we continue to run these reports, to remind people they’re out there everywhere among us and the littler critters are not necessarily safe … TR

Michelle on Genesee October 20, 2009 (7:33 pm)

On Oct 8th my 1 year old orange tabby named Luca has been missing.I have 2 other cats that are 8yrs and 10 yrs .These cats have all been indoor outdoor kitties.Never a problem ,Luca was last seen at 5 am always home for food at 6am.Has never been seen agian.Whats crazy is I have a raccoon family that stoppes by everyday for the last 2 plus years is also missing!Do they sence danger and move on or did they get eatin too?

Michelle on Genesee October 20, 2009 (8:00 pm)

I forgot to say i live on 32nd and Genesee,and we have a some what of greenbelt behind us that runs along the West Seattle freeway.May be Coyotes?

Danno October 20, 2009 (8:22 pm)

Mike-
I don’t believe they are that afraid of humans as much as they are mostly nocturnal so it is unlikely most people will cross paths with Wiley. Take up golf and you will likely encounter more coyotes than you have seen before. They will wander down a fairway with total disregard for your human presence.

GG-
Probably quite a few more than just one in your area.

Just my $0.02 (CDN)…

JH October 20, 2009 (10:13 pm)

My house backs into Schmitz Park. I hear the coyotes every single day & night. Love the sound of them! Surprisingly I rarely see them though, even though they yip right off the yard.

Cheryl October 21, 2009 (8:12 am)

My neighbors have 2 cats that poop in my yard daily (not to mention the fact that outdoor cats are descimating song bird populations across the US). Cat urine & poop is just about the most disgusting smell I can think of, and walking through it unexpectedly is really annoying as well. Though, I don’t appreciate people who don’t clean up after their dogs, at least they’re more likely to do so, since they usually accompany their dogs on walks. People who have outdoor cats don’t seem to care where their cats roam, let alone poop.

Being nicely sandwiched between Lincoln Park, Fauntleroy Park & the greenbelt off Thistle, I wholeheardedtly WELCOME those yelping ‘yotes to come on over & take care of my cat problem any time!