The latest West Seattle coyote sighting was shared by Diane, and it paints quite the picture:

Today, a coyote was chased by crows through the Delridge P-Patch parking lot along Puget Blvd toward the Longfellow Creek greenbelt. It looked like a very healthy male.

As always – we share this advice about what to do if you see a coyote as well as how to reduce the chance of conflicts. (The crows seem to know already.)

ADDED 9:28 PM: Another one came in right after we published this. From Melissa:

Just had a coyote go trotting down the street here, heading toward 16th. I’m just below Riverview Park on Othello. He moved too fast for me to get a pic, though. Figured I’d pass along a head’s up.

Someone asked us recently about the Schmitz Park coyotes, saying they hadn’t heard (much less seen) them lately. This sighting report received late Sunday night suggests they’re still around

I live near Schmitz Park Elementary on 50th and Spokane St. I was sitting on our patio in the back of our house at about 10:45 pm tonight and saw a single adult coyote heading north in our alley. 50th street “T” ‘s in to Spokane street at the front of Schmitz Park Elementary. Schmitz Park Preserve comes right up to the street in between the school and a residential property. Many homes border the preserve and there are no fences to keep coyotes from coming up to hunt in the neighborhoods. If anyone has pets that go out at night, please consider having them come in at night. I know how much we treasure out pets and I would not want any one to lose one to a coyote or raptor. Domestic pets don’t have a healthy fear of wild animals and large raptors that hunt in the nights and early morning hours. I was stunned to see one out in my neighbor’s yard. I have heard them but never actually seen them. One day they howled at the edge of the park around midnight and then another time at 9:30 in the morning. That was an odd time to hear them. I thought they were nocturnal. Hope this is helpful to those walking with pets in the evening as well.

There’s more you should know about co-existing with coyotes – read the state’s advice here.

Early Tuesday, we published a coyote-sighting report for the first time in a while, after some had asked us if they somehow weren’t around any more. Yes, they are, as these photos show – Mark Wangerin photographed the coyote pup above, earlier this week at Camp Long, and not far away, minutes ago, Zane sent us this photo from the West Seattle Golf Course:

Zane saw the coyote and a pup around the 12th hole, fifteen minutes ago. Reminder: It’s best for us and them if they keep their distance – lots of advice here about not providing food, and about scaring them away if they get too close.

(November 2nd photo by Scott Painter)
That photo was taken at Camp Long about 400 feet north of the lodge, by the photographer’s estimate. But as you’ll see in this roundup of recent reports received from WSB readers, they don’t by any means limit themselves to parks and greenbelts. The photographs we receive tend to show them in those settings, but here’s one spotted on a neighborhood sidewalk:

Katina, who shared that photo, explained:

My family and I encountered this coyote at the intersection of Walnut Ave SW and SW Hinds (October 28th) at 10:30 am. It was clearly injured about the neck area. It was originally sitting in the middle to the street, but began to run as our car approached. It then slowed down and just stared at us before taking off down 40th Ave SW.

Seven more recent reports are ahead, starting with a pet owner who saw two coyotes make off with her cat:Read More

Mark Wangerin thinks that might be the same coyote he’s photographed before in the West Seattle Golf Course/lower Camp Long area. This photo is from Thursday. And it leads off the latest list of sightings reported by WSB’ers – read on:

Read More

Last time we published a roundup of recent coyote sightings, we included a reader photo from 36th and Hinds. After that, Marvin Music sent photos of what he thinks might be the same one – above – often seen, he says, near his home in the 33rd/Hinds area, though seldom in daylight. And now, it’s time another roundup – starting with two sightings came in barely an hour apart this afternoon. First, from Katy:

Approaching the intersection of 41st and Dawson just a few minutes (4:10 pm sunday) ago I startled a coyote, who turned north on Dawson and trotted along the sidewalk nearly the full length of the block. I glanced away to grab my camera and he/she turned up into one of the yards for cover. My husband swears he saw a coyote with two older pups in the neighbor’s yard about a month ago… These sightings are happening in the middle of the day. We have some folks in the neighborhood that choose to leave feed out for feral cats…I’ve seen raccoons also feeding on those porches. Perhaps these things in turn attract the coyotes… who knows…. I am assuming they will avoid people, but again, who knows. Slightly unnerving.

From Trina:

Just wanted to let you know I saw a coyote in our neighborhood. It was on 26th Ave SW between 100th st and 99th st. Let people know to keep their pets inside!

Ahead, four other sightings from the past week:
Read More

Bryan photographed that coyote in his back yard near 36th and Hinds, where he says it’s showed up the past two days. That’s one of four sightings we’ve received in the past five days, including:

*13th and Cloverdale (same area mentioned during last week’s Highland Park Action Committee meeting), last Friday morning. Amy writes, “I was walking home from dropping my kindergartner off at Highland Park Elementary. I was heading west on Cloverdale and saw the coyote on the corner of 13th and Cloverdale.”

*Also in Highland Park, last Thursday. Erin writes, “Saw a coyote … run across our backyard that borders the greenbelt in Highland Park. After clapping loudly to scare it away, I realized there was a second one off in the woods in a different direction.”

*From the Fairmount Ravine area, Jennifer sent in a “found cat” note last week – after, she said, “I just had a coyote chase a young gray cat into my yard. … He sat down across the street from my partner and yawned at him this morning when he interrupted the cat chase by going out to get in his car.”

We report periodically on coyote sightings not in the interest of hysteria, but in the interest of neighbors reminding neighbors that they live among us. For answers to questions such as “what do I do if I see one?” and “what do I do to encourage them to keep their distance?” the state’s Living With Wildlife: Coyotes infopage offers thorough advice. Archived coyote reports published on WSB can be found here; the map we published earlier this year, to show all the places WSB readers have reported sightings since 2007, can be seen here.

That photo is from Aly, taken in July in the 24th SW/Cloverdale vicinity, where she reported this week she is still seeing them. Then this morning, Becky reported that coyotes were “hanging around” Hamilton Viewpoint Park early today. Those two were simple sightings – but this next note also came in from Highland Park a short time ago, causing us to speed up the coyote roundup we were working on, since this is reported in an area popular with dog owners:

I live on 3rd Ave SW behind Westcrest Park and off-leash park and I had my 4 dogs attacked last night by the coyotes that are in the area. There have been 2 of them spotted on my street in recent weeks. I have one of my dogs in critical condition now and 3 I am nursing at home. Please, everyone, watch out for them; they are even out during the late afternoon in daylight. We need to find a way to get the city or state to set up a trap to move them into the mountains.

We have a followup question out. Ahead, three other recent coyote reports:Read More

“Look who was sunbathing in my backyard today!” Jude wrote, sharing this photo on the WSB Facebook page. Clearest, “closest” coyote photo we’ve seen in a while – but no, Jude wasn’t really face-to-face with this one; she was inside her home and equipped with good camera equipment, as well as skill. She lives near Schmitz Park – but remember, as our map of WSB’ers’ coyote reports showed, they’re everywhere, not just near parks/greenbelts. (If you do wind up close to one, the best thing to do for their sake and yours is to try hard to scare it away – the state’s coyote-info page has suggestions.)

Recent comments and correspondence have led us to realize that some people still are not aware that coyotes are pretty much everywhere around the peninsula (here’s our map). So, when something like this note from Bill comes in, we need to share it:

My wife was walking our dog this morning in the Westwood area when she came across a coyote with a black cat in its mouth. This happened on 32nd Ave between Thistle and Cloverdale. Just want to give all of our neighbors near here a heads-up.

Everything you want to know about coyotes – including what to do when you see one – is here.

A two-part update tonight regarding West Seattle coyotes: First, thanks to everyone who has shared recent sightings, which we’ll be adding to the map that debuted here back in May, with locations of the sighting reports we’ve received periodically since 2007. Nothing particularly unusual about the latest sightings – just further proof that coyotes are all over the peninsula; the sightings included the Admiral District, Seaview, Gatewood, West Seattle High School vicinity, Hamilton Viewpoint vicinity, Arbor Heights. One included a warning from a Fauntleroy resident who believes a coyote killed their cat in late July; their neighbor heard a commotion and found the cat in his driveway, three days after another local family lost a pet. The resident says, “People should be warned to keep their pets inside at night, especially.”

That brings us to the Seola Beach situation we first reported in late June, after learning that the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Wildlife Services division had been called in to investigate the possibility of “aggressive coyotes” (here’s our original report). We finally got back in touch with Wildlife Services’ regional assistant director Ken Gruver late last week after a few bouts of protracted phone tag. He in turn checked in with the field agent who was reported to be working with neighbors upset by coyote attacks on two dogs last spring.

Read More

Two weeks after our first report about a federal coyote hunter dispatched to Seola Beach in southwest West Seattle after two dog deaths, no official update yet on the U.S. Wildlife Services‘ “fact-finding mission” (as a regional manager described it) there – we just checked back and learned all the local managers are out of state this week. However, we did get a coyote-sighting report from that same area this morning, sent by Jamie:

My husband came across coyotes in mid-hunt early this morning, about 5 am, while walking out of our house and to his car. He saw them snatch a small animal; he was pretty sure it was a cat.

We live right at the top of the Seola Beach ravine/greenbelt at 35th and 108th. The exact spot when the coyotes confronted the woman and her dog last fall. Thought I would report it in case anyone in the area misses their cat today…

It’s been a busy day for lost-and-found pet reports, but we haven’t heard anything from that area. Meantime, the state’s Living With Wildlife – Coyotes informational page includes info on what other animals coyotes eat – and important advice on what to do if you see one (in short: scare it away).

That’s Seola Beach Drive in southernmost West Seattle, a street that first leads through a ravine, and then to a small beach community. It’s where one WSB’er had an encounter last night that might portend the arrival of federal coyote hunters in West Seattle, from an agency that reportedly has killed a million coyotes, among other animals, and come under increasing scrutiny as a result. We are still investigating – but on the chance that someone else has had a similar encounter, we wanted to share his story, and the results of our first followup.

Read More

Kimberly shared photos this afternoon of three coyote pups “playing in the landscaping in the back of our community.” That’s the City Lights Condos on Harbor Avenue SW (map).

These are the first coyote photos we’ve received in a long time; we’ve been planning to relaunch our coyote-report coverage with an extra element:

The markers on that map represent every coyote sighting published on WSB in the past five years – including the ones that came up in the comment section. WSB contributor Katie Meyer went through every story in our coyote-report archive, and the comments, to make the map. We intend to keep adding to it, and this one from Kimberly will be added soon. As the coyote reports have come in over the years, someone would suggest every now and then that we make a map, so there would be more of an overview look to underscore the point that they have been seen just about everywhere in West Seattle (not just near greenbelts), and here it is. Updates to come.

Quick break for a couple more short stories before we resume weather-related coverage. From Charley:

Today (Tuesday the 17th of January) a young coyote was spotted roaming around Riverview Park neighborhood. He visited many neighbors’ backyards and seemed harmless (maybe just a little hungry). He was later spotted going into a wooded area, which later he left to roam around more.

The WSB archive of West Seattle coyote reports – including what to do if you see one (hint: make a lot of noise – they and we need to remain wary of each other) – can be found here.

The first coyote report of the New Year – at least, the first one we’ve heard about. From Cara about an hour ago:

My husband just reported that there was a coyote in our yard (40th between Hanford and Hinds) [map]. The coyote walked down the street (south on 40th) and is heading that way.

We are asked on occasion why we publish these reports, and our response is usually “until we stop hearing from people who weren’t previously aware that coyotes are IN the city.” Latest example ahead:Read More

“Fred by the Library” sent this just before midnight:

Saw 2 healthy-sized coyotes about 30 minutes ago by Arch Ave SW and Walnut Ave SW [map] while walking the dog. They sauntered away to the NW after we saw each other (they were about 50 yards away).

Thought others in the neighborhood might like to know.

Coyotes made it into our West Seattle wildlife year-in-review report; if you haven’t read up recently on what to do if you see one (most important advice – try to spook them), here it is again.

Pete says he was in his office along College Street Ravine in North Admiral this morning when “to my surprise, a visitor showed up outside my window.” He says the coyote went through the yard 4 times. Meantime, Bly reported a south Morgan Junction sighting (California/Frontenac) via Twitter.

Coyote reports we’ve received over the past three-plus years are archived here.

This is the third coyote sighting in a row reported as a pair. This one’s from Todd:

I wanted to let people in my neighborhood know about a pair of coyotes my wife and I encountered tonight while walking our dog around Riverview Playfield. They were near the tennis courts and playground when I spotted the pair and they were watching us. We stopped and then one of them started running toward us and stopped about 30 yards away. I got between our dog and them and walked toward them with arms up and yelling – trying to scare them away – but the one in front only backed off about 20 feet, then stopped to watch us again. We altered our route and I saw the aggressive one pick up a large branch in its mouth and head downhill. They both reappeared about 30 seconds later and watched us walk away. They showed very little fear and they were fairly large – maybe 50-60 lbs.

Trying to scare away is what experts recommend – it’s supposed to at least keep the coyotes guessing.