Ever since the start of the pandemic, more people have been noting instances of wildlife running amok in the city of Hoboken, including deer, seals, skunks, raccoons, and now, coyotes. The first record of a coyote living in New Jersey was located near Lambertville, Hunterdon County in 1939. However, state maps show that coyotes were not reported in or near Hudson County until the 1990s and not in the waterfront towns as of 10 years ago.
On Wednesday, February 15, several residents of Hoboken spotted a coyote early in the morning near Elysian Park, which is located at 10th and Hudson Street. That same night, the police got a call from a local resident about a possible coyote further inland. Public safety spokesperson Marci Rubin said, “Responding officers saw a small animal on nearby 8th Street before it ran off. Hoboken police cannot confirm what type of animal it was at this time. It’s rare, but not unheard of for wildlife to be spotted in Hoboken.”
Despite somewhat resembling adorable dogs or foxes, coyotes are dangerous animals. The NJ Fish and Wildlife makes the following statement regarding precautions with coyotes: “Never feed a coyote. Deliberately feeding coyotes puts pets and other residents in the neighborhood at risk.” In addition to coyotes, there have been sightings of skunks. Hoboken local Merrit Patterson described an incident where he saw a skunk on 14th Street late last year when it walked over to his and his wife’s dinner date after smelling some leftovers.
With sightings of wildlife increasing in Hoboken, Patch asks you to “Send your stinky sightings and photos of skunks, snakes, seals, eels (not in sushi), deer, raccoons, coyotes, foxes, and other creatures to Hoboken Patch.”
