Signs warning about aggressive coyote behaviour have been posted along the Old Town Trail near the Fortress of Louisbourg in Cape Breton for a few days now. “I didn’t see them, but (my dog) started to growl and point and I could hear them and they sounded close,” said Louisbourg, N.S., resident Bob MacKeigan. “So, I retreated to my car with the dog.” MacKeigan took photos of a group of coyotes he saw while walking in a different area near the Fortress with his dog earlier this week. He said while the animals didn’t give him any problems, the pictures have gotten plenty of reaction online. “I just looked today and people must be really curious about coyotes because it reached 59,000 views which just blew me away,” MacKeigan said. He said this week’s sightings were not the first time he has spotted coyotes where he normally walks. He saw some back in the spring, but for now his morning routine is on hold. “I haven’t walked the Causeway since,” he said. ‘They can get aggressive’ On Wednesday, visitors walking the Old Town Trail were surprised to see the signs warning about wildlife. “We got a stick and we took a couple of small pebbles,” said Stephanie Yamout, who was visiting from Switzerland and said it is her first time in Nova Scotia. “At first I thought it was a joke because I can’t imagine any coyotes around here.” However, it seems as though sightings have gone up. “Unfortunately, we have had incidents reported to us of coyotes approaching people and not moving off,” explained Eddie Kennedy, a visitor experience manager with Parks Canada at Fortress of Louisbourg. Kennedy figures the reason the animals have been acting differently than normal is because people have been feeding them. “If a coyote starts associating humans with a food source, instead of just being curious and staying away from them, they will approach them thinking they are going to be fed,” he said. “They can then get aggressive and that’s when there is a danger both to the coyotes and the people they are interacting with.” ‘Make yourself big’ Nearly 17 years ago, in Oct. 2009, a 19-year-old woman – a singer-songwriter visiting from Toronto – was killed by a pair of coyotes while hiking the Skyline Trail in the Cape Breton Highlands National Park. While incidents like that are quite rare, those who are familiar with the animals’ behaviour have some tips for anyone who might find themselves in a potentially unsafe situation. “Make yourself big,” Kennedy said. “Wave your arms in the air. Make lots of noise. Holler at it. It’s fine to pick up stones or sticks and throw at the coyote’s direction.” Early Wednesday morning a woman reported coming within an arm’s length of a coyote while running along Causeway Drive in Sydney River, N.S., – a quiet suburban neighbourhood. She told CTV News Atlantic that while the sighting frightened her, the animal was not aggressive and quickly ran off into nearby woods. For more Nova Scotia news, visit our dedicated provincial page
