Suburb Has Coyotes, But Are They a Problem?

Coyotes are found in neighborhoods from Royal Oak to the Detroit River, according to the Royal Oak Nature Society. (Photo via Wikimedia/Creative Commons)

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Whether Royal Oak has a coyote problem appears to be a matter of perspective.

No one disputes the animals, known for how well they adapt to different habitats, live in Royal Oak, as well as in all the neighborhoods from here to the Detroit River,” Robert Muller of the Royal Oak Nature Society said in a post on the city’s Facebook page.

Muller says the animals, sometimes called coywolves or prairie wolves, peacefully co-exist with people. They’re smart animals that – like deer, fox and owls – are stealth and stay out of sight. Police say they haven’t gotten any reports of aggressive coyote behavior.

“I would say there isn’t a coyote problem, they’re just a wild animal that lives here with the hawks and possums. The only complaints we got were sightings, and some proved to be false,” City Manager Donald Johnson told the Detroit Free Press. “I don’t have any reports of coyotes being aggressive up to this point.”

Still, a local homeowners association has engaged a private contractor to eradicate the animals – resulting in an avalanche of calls to city officials after an image on WXYZ-TV of a trapped coyote in a back yard disturbed southeast Michigan residents from Novi to Shelby Township, the city said.

“Royal Oak officials want the public to know the city is not trapping or authorizing the trapping of coyotes on public property,” the city said on its Facebook page. “Furthermore, Royal Oak Police have no reports of aggressive coyotes in Royal Oak.”

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The Arlington Park Homeowners Association contracted with Critters Be Gone, a Waterford-based animal removal service, after reports of aggressive coyotes. Mark Evans, who owns Critters Be Gone, said city officials denied coyotes were a problem, but his firm trapped one near a daycare center on Lexington.

Dennis Cronk, a state-certified trapper from Berkley who trapped the animal, said he and his son watched the coyote jump a fence into a back yard, where it barked for about 10 minutes.

“We tracked it through the neighborhood, and under the fence by the football field at Royal Oak High School,” he said. “It ran to a neighboring house on Lexington and barked for about 10 minutes before meandering off.”

There was enough snow still on the ground that the Cronks were able to track the animal from the daycare center to a den at the Tenhave Woods are next to the high school. The animal was later trapped in a private back yard and euthanized it.

“We had complaints for months about a coyote charging people and pets,” said homeowners association representative Lynn Flowers told the Free Press. “The city told us we had to hire someone if we wanted anything done about it.”

Flowers said she and her neighbors were worried about the safety of their children and pets. Coyotes eat large and small animals, from kittens to moose.

“I took my pup out ... we went to a certain spot, looked up, and the coyote came across the park behind me and hopped the fence into my back yard straight for us,” Flowers said. “I scooped up my pup and went indoors. Other neighbors have had a golden retriever and a yellow Lab challenged by the coyote during broad daylight.”

Evans disputes the assertion that the coy-wolves, as they’re sometimes called, are not aggressive. Rather, during the current mating season, “they can be really aggressive,” he said.

Cronk said he has received death threats for euthanizing the coyote – and even took out a personal protection order against one activist who showed up at his home – but he said releasing them somewhere else is risky for the handler and there’s no guarantee they won’t return.

“Coyotes can attack while being released,” he said. “Also, they travel miles and can come back to their original location — and now they’re wise to being trapped. Relocation is essentially just making a human-acclimated wild animal someone else’s problem.”

Cronk said he plans to track and trap another coyote that has been seen on a trail camera installed in the Arlington Park area.

The city has put up its own trail camera to verify coyote sightings, Lt. Dave Clemens of the Royal Oak Police said.

“We will be working with the citizens to address this issue,” he said. “Coyotes have always been here in Royal Oak, but we definitely take it seriously if there is aggression.”

Cronk said one way to deter coyotes is to avoid feeding birds and deer, or leaving cat or dog food in the yard, because that feed attracts rodents, a food source for coyotes.

“As the weather gets better, there will be a better food base – squirrels, rabbits etc. – for coyotes,” Cronk said. “And they will be less likely to go into neighborhood yards looking for food.”

More resources on discouraging coyotes are offered by the Michigan Humane Society.

Residents who notice aggressive behavior from coyotes – or any wild animal – should call the Royal Oak Police at (248) 246-3500.