News for Florida animal advocates

Coyotes are intelligent, adaptable, amazing animals. They’ve successfully expanded their range to every state in the nation (except Hawaii). Coyotes arrived in the Florida Panhandle in the 1970s and first started showing up in South Florida a few years ago.

Coyotes eat just about everything, including rodents and watermelon and lizards. A hungry coyote will also target other small animals, like cats. That’s what got them into trouble in the City of Parkland, in western Broward County. Last month, the city began debating how to respond to residents who blamed coyotes for the deaths of one small dog who was running loose, a few outdoor “pet” cats and possibly some sheep.

The City of Parkland was provided with a lot of information about nonlethal measures to resolve coyote conflicts. The Florida Fish & Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) tried to calm the community and explained that common sense steps- such as keeping cats indoors, dogs on a leash, and securing garbage cans- would go a long way toward preventing problems. The FWC also warned that killing coyotes is not a solution. FWC spokeswoman Gabriella Ferraro told the Sun-Sentinel that trapping, “will not permanently help the situation. Residents of the state of Florida have to live with wildlife.” Another FWC representative, Jorge Pino, added “They have been here for a long time, and they will continue to be here.”

But in the end the City of Parkland gave in to the fears of residents. Today, the city announced that it will spend as much as $5,000 to pay a trapper to kill coyotes. The trapper will use snares and a live trap to catch the coyotes, and then the animals will be killed (the State of Florida does not permit coyotes to be relocated).

Please write to the City of Parkland City Commission and tell them that you are disappointed that the city has decided to kill coyotes. Ask them to immediately halt the trapping, and instead focus on educating residents about how to live with their wild neighbors.

Contact:

Mayor Michael Udine
E-mail: mudine@cityofparkland.org

Commissioner Mark Weissman
E-mail: mweissman@cityofparkland.org

Vice Mayor Jay D. Smith
E-mail: jsmith@cityofparkland.org

Deputy Vice Mayor David Rosenof
E-mail: drosenof@cityofparkland.org

Commissioner Jared E. Moskowitz
E-mail: jmoskowitz@cityofparkland.org

*Send a copy of your e-mail to City Manager Caryn Gardner-Young
E-mail: cgardneryoung@cityofparkland.org

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