Coyote spotted in South Boston

BOSTON -- A coyote was seen sprinting down M Street in South Boston on Wednesday afternoon.

At first, resident Shawn Young couldn’t believe his eyes.

“And I snapped a couple photos, and off she went,” said Young.

The coyote ran away from Young and was being pursued by a State Police patrol car.

Young said the coyote drew a lot of attention from the neighbors.

“Everyone was kind of caught off guard. You know, people turning around, driving back by, trying to catch a peak,” said Young.

Environmental officials said it’s unusual to see a coyote in Boston, but not unheard of.

“Highly unusual for the city for a coyote to be running around the streets of South Boston,” said Jack O’Brien, a neighbor.

O’Brien has seen other animals in the area, but not a coyote.

“We’ve seen possums, raccoons, skunks, but never in our wildest dreams did we think of a coyote being around there,” said O’Brien.

State Police and environmental officers tried to corner or capture the coyote, but were unsuccessful.

Boston residents are now on the lookout.

“There’s like tons of children in the neighborhood, so yeah, it’s scary,” said one Boston resident.

“You don’t know what an animal like that can do. They’re probably, I’m sure, not trained and unpredictable,” said resident Jim Prokop.

Officials are advising residents to cover up their garbage cans and bird feeders because coyotes like to scavenge for food. Residents are also encouraged to bring their pets inside.

(Copyright (c) 2010 Sunbeam Television Corp. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)