WildEarth Guardians

Friday, February 20, 2009
Group Calls For End to Coyote Killing in Greenwood Village

Coyote Killed Last Night in Westlands Park, Greenwood Village, Colorado
Contact: WildEarth Guardians

DENVER - WildEarth Guardians called on Greenwood Village today to end its coyote killing program. The shooter hired by the city claims to have shot a coyote last night at Westlands Park.

“Greenwood Village wanted vengeance, and they got their eye for an eye: only one coyote has been accused of attacking a person, and one coyote is now dead,” stated Dr. Nicole Rosmarino of WildEarth Guardians. “We urge the city to call it even and call off its hired gun.”

WildEarth Guardians has repeatedly offered to meet with Greenwood Village to develop a plan for co-existence with coyotes instead of killing them on sight. WildEarth Guardians worked closely with Centennial to pass that city’s plan, which emphasizes public education and hazing coyotes to make them more wary of people. While Centennial passed its coyote plan on February 2, three days later, Greenwood Village passed an ordinance that allows shooting of coyotes in public parks. Greenwood Village is literally across the street (Orchard Road) from Centennial.

Greenwood Village Mayor Nancy Sharpe wrote to WildEarth Guardians, “I understand that you are working with the City of Centennial but, with all due respect, they are years behind the City of Greenwood Village in addressing aggressive/problem coyote behavior.”

But a symposium held last week to discuss coyote issues across the Boulder/Denver metropolitan area overwhelmingly emphasized coexistence education and primarily non-lethal approaches to coyote management - precisely the approach Centennial is taking.

Scientists have discovered that coyotes in lethally controlled populations will increase breeding and have larger litter sizes. Thus, killing coyotes can, ironically, increase coyote populations.

Dr. Marc Bekoff, who has studied coyotes since 1970, notes, “Killing coyotes doesn’t work to reduce conflict with humans. Whether you love them or hate them, you shouldn’t endorse the killing approach.”

Greenwood Village City Manager Jim Sanderson told the group today that its contractor would only kill dangerous or menacing coyotes. “Since the city says its shooter will only kill aggressive coyotes, and only one animal has been accused of being aggressive toward a person, they should consider the coyote killed last night as the end to this so-called public safety issue,” said Rosmarino.

While Sanderson said that the coyote was killed last night at Westlands Park, he would not say when. Park visitors said that they neither heard gunshots or saw coyotes or the shooter from 4pm-6:30pm. WildEarth Guardians expressed its concern that shooting firearms in parks, especially after dark, presents a significant public safety threat.

Greenwood Village has conducted a long experiment with coyote killing, authorizing dozens of coyotes to be killed over the past 14 years. Yet its current position is that coyotes are an acute public safety risk. “Greenwood Village, better than most, should know that killing coyotes doesn’t work. Its current program simply won’t solve anything,” said Rosmarino.

WildEarth Guardians is a west-wide conservation group dedicated to protecting wildlife, wild places, and wild rivers. The group has offices throughout the West, including Denver.

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