You’re out for an evening walk in your neighborhood when you notice a large, blocky shape atop a lamppost. Suddenly the shape leaves its perch, swoops down on silent wings into a vacant lot, then wings off again, a lifeless bundle in its talons. A great horned owl, hunter of the night and a common urban and suburban resident, has made another kill.
Greenbelts, cemeteries, city parks, airport runways, drainage canals, undeveloped lots, playgrounds, backyards— these urban places are home to dozens of wildlife species that have adapted to life around people. Urban wildlife has the same habitat needs of creatures in the wilderness—food, water, shelter and space. You’re most likely to glimpse your wild neighbors if you visit habitats that meet their needs. Avoid bluegrass parks and sterile, concrete-lined creeks. Look instead in places allowed to “go wild”.
Walk the paths along rivers, canals, and streams that meander through metropolitan areas. Streamside trees and shrubs may host flickers, kingfishers, red-winged and yellow-headed blackbirds, song sparrows, chickadees and other songbirds. Great blue herons and black-crowned night herons may fish the waters, while mallards, teal, and other ducks dabble for food. Check the soft mud at the water’s edge for the human-like "hand" and footprints of raccoons.
Landscaped city parks are full of songbirds, squirrels, and cottontails. Deer, coyotes—even wild turkeys—may move along greenbelt corridors through housing developments. The natural drainage paths found around schoolyards, parks, playgrounds and churches often foster tiny wetlands—cattail marshes soon inhabited by territorial red-winged blackbirds. The long vegetation may shelter frogs and snakes, mice and shrews and maybe a hunting red fox. The solitude and lush landscaping of cemeteries beckons to many species—rabbits nibble the shrubs and plants, mice and voles find shelter in the grass, in turn attracting foxes, owls, hawks and other hunters. Poles along roads and streets are great places to watch for raptors, from small kestrels to golden eagles.
Your neighborhood is probably full of wild inhabitants. Get out there and meet the neighbors!