Have you spotted a coyote or a red fox in Wichita recently? If so, the Kansas Department of Wildlife and Parks wants to know. The Wichita Urban Coyote and Fox project, which launched March 1 in partnership with Utah State University, has the goal of measuring coyotes and fox populations in the area. The department is asking anyone who spots one of the two species to report it so it can use the data for the survey. “We don’t really have much data and information on our coyotes and red fox populations in the city of Wichita,” said Jon Beckmann, Region 3 wildlife supervisor with the Kansas Department of Wildlife and Parks. “We know we have them here. We know that we get calls on them, but we really don’t have a lot of data, which makes it a little more difficult to manage a population.” … “Some wildlife can survive and even thrive in cities,” the project’s page reads. “Coyotes and red foxes are two such canids that are able to take advantage of the perks of the city … However, we know very little about how these canids are successful at living among humans in the Great Plains. This lack of data impedes management.”
Source: Wichita Eagle
