AAA Travel: 866-883-4985 PORTLAND 68 Marginal Way SOUTH PORTLAND 401 Western Avenue BRUNSWICK 147 Bath Rd Merrymeeting Plaza AUBURN 600 Center St Shaw’s Plaza BIDDEFORD 472 Alfred Road Mastering the Art of Refined Travel AAA Travel: 866-883-4985 PORTLAND 68 Marginal Way SOUTH PORTLAND 401 Western Avenue BRUNSWICK 147 Bath Rd Merrymeeting Plaza AUBURN 600 Center St Shaw’s Plaza BIDDEFORD 472 Alfred Road Mastering the Art of Refined Travel AAA Travel: (866) 883-4985 A p r i l 2 0 1 8 3 9 geri vistein tein says. “But we need to remember, if you leave your little five-pound toy dog in the yard at night time…Well, to a coyote, that’s no dog, that’s dinner! The same goes with cats. We tend to let our feline pets roam in urban areas, but that’s a potential din- ner for a coyote.” During pup season, dogs are as likely to threaten coyotes by interfer- ing with their dens and stressing the moth- er and babies. “Keep your dog on a leash or in sight of you,” Vistein urges. As for those bird feeders you lovingly hang in hopes of the scarlet glimpse of a cardinal? “Take them down,” she says. “It goes against what we’ve been taught, but more seeds on the ground means more rodents. You’re invit- ing coyotes right into your yard.” Though our kinder nature may tempt us to leave out snacks for furry and feathered friends, “It’s not a natural part of the ecosystem.” The same goes for intentionally leaving out food for coyotes themselves. “Those spe- cies have survived the winter without us for millennia.” When left to their own devices, coyotes control rodent populations–a boon in our litter-strewn urban areas. They’ll also deter felines, allowing bird populations to flour- ish. ​ And while these adaptable and fierce- ly intelligent creatures have learned to live among humans, we’re still learning how to coexist with them. “They don’t want to in- teract with humans in the vast majority of instances,” says Dan Gardoqui, “mostly be- cause when wild animals and humans tan- gle, it usually doesn’t end up well for the animal.” n A rare white coyote walked out of the woods in Kennebunk in 2013. She later died under a porch on Balsam Lane. Wildlife biologist Scott Lindsay later told us the body had been “claimed for taxidermy” by a resident in Biddeford. Cape Elizabeth Police issued a warning to residents last summer, when a pair of coy- otes were repeatedly spotted along Robin- son Wood trails near Shore Road. Roadrun- ner was not seen in the vicinity. “I’ve seen packs of seven of them running across the yard, not scared of people,” Bid- deford resident John Dumoulin told NECN in 2014. A city meeting was head to address increased coyote sightings around the city. Watch Dog