TP_122817

4 | December 28, 2017 | The tinley junction News
tinleyjunction.com
SUPERVISOR
PAUL O’GRADY
Orland Township Supervisor
Coyote ‘too close for
comfort’ in Tinley
Officials offer tips,
insight for increased
visibility of wildlife
PRESENTS
APPEAL YOUR PROPERTY
TAX ASSESSMENT
Wednesday, January 3, 2018 • 6:00pm
Orland Township Office
14807 S. Ravinia • Orland Park, IL 60462
(708)403-4222
Supervisor Paul O’Grady is hosting this event with Cook County
Board of Review Commissioner Dan Patlak. This event will
help educate taxpayers how to file a successful 2017 tax appeal
and provide the opportunity for taxpayers to receive individual
assistance from one of the Board of Review analysts to address
any specific issues or concerns. Please bring a copy of your most
recent tax bill.
Joe Coughlin, Interim Editor
It’s not unusual for Tinley
Park’s Bernadette Shanahan-
Haas to see a coyote.
Living near Ridgeland Avenue
and a forest preserve,
her family periodically spots
all sorts of wildlife, including
coyotes and deer.
But Dec. 18 was different.
That morning, Shanahan-
Haas was driving her children
to school around 8:15
a.m. when she saw a woman
awkwardly hustling as she
walked her dog. While she
thought that was strange, it
was nothing compared to
what was “following her”:
A bulky coyote methodically
and casually walking
down a suburban sidewalk
on 65th Avenue near 179th
Street.
“I’m trying not to be dramatic,
but it was crazy,” Shanahan-Haas
said. “I didn’t
know what to do or expect.
It was just walking down my
sidewalk. What if my kids
were out playing or my dog
was out? It was too close to
comfort for sure.”
Shanahan-Haas’ story is
one of a handful that have
caused a suburban stir lately.
Many have reported and photographed
a coyote roaming
residential areas in Tinley.
There was also a dramatic
video that went viral of a
small dog surviving a coyote
attack Dec. 14 in a backyard
in north-suburban Northfield,
and, closer, a small family
dog was reportedly killed by
a coyote Dec. 8 in Orland
A coyote photographed by a resident near 180th Place and
Ridgeland Avenue, near an area of Forest Preserves of
Cook County. Photo Submitted
Read up
More information on
suburban coyotes, wildlife
Resources:
• Living With Wildlife In
Illinois: web.extension.
illinois.edu/wildlife/
• Urban Coyote
Research; Cook County:
urbancoyoteresearch.com
Coyote facts:
• Natural to the area
• Protected species
• Top predator in Illinois
• Can run up to 43 mph
Park.
Nicky Strahl, a biologist
who covers Cook and Du-
Page counties for the Department
of Natural Resources,
responded to the Orland Park
incident. She has seen about
one coyote report per day in
recent weeks, she said.
Strahl said there is a reason
behind the increased coytoe
sightings — multiple reasons,
actually.
For one, thanks to the unseasonably
warm temperatures
in recent winters, there
are more wild and healthier
animals (not just coyotes)
around suburbia.
“It’s all wildlife — shrews,
for short distances
• Good swimmers
• Very adaptable (habitat
and hunting)
• About 30,000 in Illinois
Coyote tips:
• Do not feed
• Do not leave small pets
unattended outdoors
• Keep garbage secure
• Keep bird-feeding areas
clean
• Feed pets indoors
• Scare it away by raising
arms, being loud and/or
throwing something near it
wolves, chipmunks, squirrels,”
she said. “They are
all increasing in population
because there is no longer
the limiting effect of winter.
Colder winters require greater
energy expenditure, just to
keep warm.”
That extra energy, Strahl
said, has these animals more
active and thus, more visible.
During colder seasons,
rodents — the main food
source for coyotes, Strahl
said, which also are enjoying
a bump in population —
hide in warm locations near
homes, like in crawl spaces
or under porches and decks.
Coyotes follow the food.