Coyotes at the gate at Wrigley — did they smell goat?
BY BAILEY DICK Chicago Sun-Times bdick@suntimes.com November 26, 2012 5:38PM
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Updated: November 29, 2012 9:27AM
Photographer Will Byington is used to snapping shots of Wrigleyville’s party animals.
But Byington found himself photographing a whole different breed Friday night when, while taking pictures of bands playing at the Cubby Bear, he spotted two coyotes in front of Wrigley Field.
“They hung out there for like five minutes, a lot longer than I would ever think they would,” Byington said. “I’ve lived in Wrigleyville for eight years, and I’ve never seen anything like it.”
Despite cars whizzing by and tipsy bar-goers screaming at the animals, the coyotes seemed unfazed.
“They seemed content,” Byington said. “It’s almost like they’re eyeing McDonald’s.”
Stan Gerht, a professor at Ohio State University who has researched coyotes in the Chicago area for years, says the creatures are more common than you might think.
“The population is already pretty high, so it’s not uncommon at all that you would see them,” Gerht said. “It’s just a matter of being in the right place at the right time.”
Gerht estimates that there are about 2,000 coyotes living in Cook County. Although coyotes typically remain well-hidden, it’s likely that there’s a coyote or two in your neighborhood.
“They’re found throughout the city. We can’t find a place where there aren’t coyotes,” he said. “The tricky thing about Chicago is that it doesn’t help [them] to go out at night because there’s always people out, even at night.”
