Hello Neighbors!

I’m thinking many of you already know about the wildlife that has moved into our area ~ and I’ve learned from a few conversations that not everyone does, so I thought I’d send out some info.

We have ~ and enjoy ~ many roadrunners. For those who don’t know, they are carnivores, so when you see a lot of feathers scattered below a pole (or? I’ve seen them eating atop poles), they could well have been from a bird caught by a roadrunner. Maybe they also help with mice – they are described in one google search as “opportunistic carnivores”, with small mammals on the list.

It’s been years since I first started hearing about raccoons in the hood ~ and since I saw one on top of my shrubs. They are still with us.

I’ve heard about squirrels and even rabbits. Recently, a neighbor thought she may have seen a fox in her yard.

I’ve now had a skunk in my fenced backyard (near the corner of Hermosa and Marquette). Lucky for me, my dog had the good sense to bark and pursue at a good distance and did (eventually) listen to me and come inside. By the time I went back out, the skunk had disappeared. Turns out they can squeeze through the gap between the gate and fence post (web said 4 inches, but things can wiggle).

We have had three coyote sightings within, I think, the last 4 to 6 weeks. Two were in the early morning hours (5:30-ish), one in the middle of the day. The mid-day encounter was reported by a woman who was walking her small dog. She picked up her dog and the coyote crossed the street, after having been behind her by, say 20 or 30 feet. These encounters happened on Roma, near Hermosa, and on Aliso (near as I know, south of Marquette).

We also have wildlife above ground ~ owls and hawks, primarily Cooper’s hawks, though one of our bird-watching neighbors said he has spotted a few Red-tailed hawks in recent weeks or months.

Please bear in mind that all of my share here is to the best of my recollection and understanding of things I’ve seen and heard.

*Those of us with cats and/or small dogs may want to read up a bit on these animals so that we can take the best possible care of our 4-legged companions. Our pets are seen as prey by some (coyotes, red-tailed hawks, is what I'm aware of so far).*

The city has info on cabq.gov. Just type in which animal you want to look up in the search bar to access each page. The search bar shows up on the lower right on the home page, then seems to migrate to the top for additional searches (at least on my laptop).

For a starter, here’s a link for info on coyotes (spoiler alert – they can easily jump over a 6-foot fence):

https://www.cabq.gov/environmentalhealth/urban-biology/urban-wildlife/coyotes

Hope this has been helpful to at least some of you, and perhaps interesting to all :)

All the best,

Karen King

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