Wildlife Moving Into the Suburbs
Jan. 26 -- When a Greenwich, Conn., mother of three heard about the new neighbors, her first reaction was that there was no way they were going to get along and she was going to do whatever it took to drive them out.
When the woman, who asked that her name not be used, called around to get help ridding her neighborhood of the unwanted new arrivals, though, she was advised to be a little tolerant and try to get along.
She did just that, and what she found was that the new family was a wonderful addition. That was something she didn't expect, because the new family was … a red fox and her kits.
From Connecticut to California, suburbanites and even urban dwellers are more and more often finding themselves living alongside wildlife. It's not just familiar nuisances such as deer and Canada geese, but small predators like coyotes and fox, and in some places such large animals as bear and moose.
For the Connecticut mother, what started as a cause for concern turned into a learning experience. She and her children loved watching the babies play as they grew up, and once they had, they all left as quickly as they had come, abandoning the den they'd built under the shed in her backyard.
"We'd never seen a fox and at first we were a bit frightened because we have three little kids," she said. "They didn't bother us at all. It was kind of neat to have the kids see them grow up, but I don't want them back."
But she and others like her may not have a choice in the matter. Indications are there are likely to be more fox — and other wildlife — in her neighborhood rather than less.
A Nuisance Factor … Mostly
Experts say the trend is due to a combination of factors.
For one thing, the human population is spreading out into areas where wildlife already lives. For another, habitats are being destroyed by logging, mining or other human activities, forcing animals to seek out new homes. In addition, towns and cities, by creating new parks and cleaning up old ones, are making attractive habitats for the more adaptive species that don't need large ranges.
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