Critters on Campus
Coyotes, Racoons, and Skunks.
A great thing about the UBC campus is the diversity of residents who make this place their home. One of my favourite neighbours is ‘Kip’ the coyote. Kip is one of a handful of coyotes living on campus. Most of the others can be found closer to the UBC Farm in south campus or around the margins of Pacific Spirit park.
An earlier coyote, dubbed Carter, hunted squirrels on campus. ‘Carter’ even ended up with his own facebook page or two. Carter was far less concerned by humans than is Kip.
These aren’t the only animal neighbours on campus. There are quite a few dozen racoons about. If one is out in the early morning or around dusk you might run into a rollicking band of racoons. I’ve seen them in parking garages, along the hedges, in fountains and pools, and even climbing up the side of the Neville Scarfe Building.
In addition to coyotes and racoons, there are also skunks on campus. They are far harder to spot as they tend to be more singular and nocturnal in their behaviours.
I am sure there are many more sitings of our fur-bearing friends. Please share your observations in the comments!.
Hi Charles,
Thanks for writing about the fur-people with whom we share our campus! Kip is one of two coyote brothers who were born on campus in 2020; he's the one with the gimpy leg, which seems to have healed, though you'll note some residual stiffness (look at his gait and watch the left rear leg). That might be one reason he is more habituated to people: he's less able to hunt successfully and more dependent on human-generated food.
One of the things I missed most during the remote teaching phase of the pandemic was not seeing the plant and animal members of the community with whom I had formed relationships -- albeit, in the case of animals, at a distance, as I don't want them to become habituated to humans. It's always a treat when I run into one of these friends. I do wish we had opossums up here, though; I miss seeing them, as I have a special fondness for them.