Coyote Family Spotted Near LaGuardia Airport
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork/AP) -- A coyote family is raising a large litter of pups in an isolated area near LaGuardia Airport.
Wild Dog Foundation founder Frank Vincente said eight coyote pups were initially spotted in Queens, but it appears only five of them have survived.
"It could've been something as simple as an accident. They could've stepped off into the East River and drowned, some tragedy like that. I doubt it was competition or the ineptness of the parents. The parents are great providers," he told 1010 WINS.
Vincente said he shooed the mother and two of the pups off a road last week.
"For the animals' own safety, I tried to get them off the road and I succeeded they did stay off the road and they went back into the woods," Vincente said.
He believes the mother may be the coyote seen last year on the rooftop of a bar in Long Island City.
Coyotes have been spotted periodically in New York City since the 1990s. Experts estimated last year that the population was probably at least in the teens.
Vincente said the coyotes are shy.
"I've walked up to them and I've chased them and they're definitely people-shy. That's a good quality you want in coyotes in urban areas," he said.
Wildlife experts recommend precautions: Don't feed coyotes, and secure your trash and pets.
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