Predators are being chased out of the countryside by suburban building and are moving into the cities, where they can prey on small pets. For instance, a coyote community has lived for at least six years less than a mile from Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport.. Science Daily quotes environmentalist Stan Gehrt as saying, "That’s an indication that they don’t have to go far to find food and water. They’re finding everything they need right there, in the suburbs of Chicago."
WHAT ELSE could be out there? Gehrt says, "The coyote is the test case for other animals. Raccoons, skunks, foxes–they’ve already been able to penetrate the urban landscape pretty well. The coyote is the most recent and largest. The jury’s out with what’s going to happen with the bigger ones." Those include wolves, mountain lions and bears. Mountain lions have been seen on the fringes of cities already, and one was shot near a neighborhood of Chicago.
Gehrt says, "They are going to be an even bigger challenge. That’s going to put the burden back on us: Are we going to be able to adjust to them living with us or are we not going to be able to coexist?" (NOTE: Subscribers can still listen to this provocative show).
Subscribers, to watch the subscriber version of the video, first log in then click on Dreamland Subscriber-Only Video Podcast link.