Wild Natomas: Coyote Pair Spotted in Local Park

A pair of coyotes have been spotted recently in the North Natomas Regional Park. / Photo Courtesy Valentina Olivieri

BY BRANDY TUZON BOYD
THE NATOMAS BUZZ | @natomasbuzz

It’s not unusual to see coyotes in the Natomas Basin, but more recently two have been spotted together in the North Natomas Regional Park.

Photographer Valentina Olivieri took a photo of the pair Tuesday morning. It was the first time Olivieri had seen a coyote — let alone two — since moving recently to Natomas.

According to the Urban Coyote Initiative, urban coyotes can create territories out of a patchwork of parks and green spaces. Urban coyotes may live in family packs or on their own at different points in their lives, they mate for life and are also monogamous.

Residents of midtown have reported seeing urban coyotes more frequently in the past year and earlier this summer a mother coyote and her pups took up residency in a den near 23rd Street and Capitol Avenue.

The city’s Front Street Animal Shelter does not trap or relocate healthy wildlife such as coyotes.

“Coyotes are wild animals and should be treated as such. No attempt should be made to pet or feed or otherwise make contact with them,” reads the shelter website. “The coyote’s natural fear of humans should not be compromised. This is the most effective way to prevent confrontations.”