Wile E. in Wildcat Country

A spirited discussion on Evanston coyotes has broken out on evanstonnow.com following a warning post by 7th Ward activist and possible aldermanic candidate Junad Rizki. No doubt Junad fears for the safety of his pig, which if eaten would be a true civic loss.

Coincidentally, on the heels of this discussion, I got a call Friday night from a neighbor advising me that a coyote had been visible and active in a backyard on the 2700 block of Harrison St. much of Friday

, sending a neighbor's poodle (safely inside a house) into fits, and had eventually slinked under a deck two yards over from mine. Altho some might be alarmed, my neighbor said she thought it was "neat," and the next neighbor I told about it also volunteered that the coyotes have a right to be here. So I stopped warning folks, altho owners of small dogs should consider not putting them outside unattended. Breeds downsized for cuteness are no match for a wily critter with longer legs, bigger teeth, and an undiscriminating palate.

It appears that coyote sightings are up slightly in Evanston lately, altho they've been around for years. But no one should panic; as I posted on evanstonnow, coyote attacks on humans are really, really rare. If you see one, just let it go its way and you yours.

We considered keeping the cats inside Friday night, but they wanted to go out and check out the situation. They came back unscathed, complaining only that coyote vigil duty entitled them to an extra round of cat food. Cats will use any excuse.

I never saw the varmint. Presumably it fled before the Saturday onslaught of leaf blowers hit the block. If not, I may crawl under that deck and see if the coyote has taken up residence, and if so, would it like to register to vote. Or maybe run for office. Coyotes are efficient, lean, and rarely say too much.