Noticing a rise in coyote sightings? You’re not alone. Here’s why it might be happening

It’s that time of year.

Whether you live in the city or suburbs, chances are you might have seen coyotes roaming your neighborhood.

A Ring doorbell camera captured a pack of three coyotes on the front steps of a home in Richton Park in January. In Chicago, cellphone video shows a coyote roaming down 99th Street.

Cordell Bullock spotted them on three separate occasions on the same day last week in Chicago’s Jeffrey Manor neighborhood.

“I was like, ‘Wow,’ because, you know, I’ve never seen coyotes in the neighborhood itself.” He said. “I was shocked, surprised.”

The sightings can be startling and alarming for those who are not used to seeing them. But are they higher than normal?

“The population is relatively steady, maybe slightly increasing at best, but they pretty much occupy every habit and niche in the Chicago region,” wildlife ecologist Dan Thompson with the Forest Preserve District of DuPage County told NBC Chicago. “We haven’t really seen a dramatic increases in populations, but this time of year there are seasonal fluctuates to their activity.”

Wildlife experts said the spike in coyote activity is likely because it’s mating season. Coyotes are also dispersing and being more territorial as they hunt for food.

“Now you got youngsters wandering around looking for a new home. Wherever they go they’re encountering it’s already occupied by other coyotes, it’s someone else’s territory. So they’re constantly on the move, being pushed around, so that’s going to help increase sightings too,” Thompson said.

While experts said coyotes are beneficial helping to maintain the ecological balance, some encounters can be dangerous if you don’t know how to respond.

“Running is definitely the thing you don’t want to do you just want to maintain eye contact, if it’s getting close you know talk to it, wave your arms, make yourself look big, try to shoo it off,” he shared. “You don’t want to be enticing the coyotes to approach you, we want to maintain their natural fear of us and we need to be the dominate individual not them.”

If you live in an area where coyotes are present, make sure you keep an eye on your pets.

“Be vigilant and just take some responsibility for caring for your pets. Don’t put it in danger,” he said. “Coyotes could show up anytime anywhere.”

Experts said they want people and coyotes to co-exist peacefully and safely during this time of year.

“I think this is the important thing – the more you understand the less you have to fear,” said Thompson. “You start to understand the patterns and realize what’s happening and what measures I need to take—if you follow those, for the most part, you’re going to be fine.”