Coyote Spotted Following Human In Central Park

From afar, coyotes may look like nothing more than cute puppers with a predilection for peeing on everything around them, but—and this may shock you to hear—they're a little less cuddly when they're literally stalking you through Manhattan. That's what happened to one person in Central Park this weekend, who captured the haunting photo above of a coyote following them. It's sorta like the poster for The Exorcist but with more fur.

Terry Meehan told West Side Rag that he spotted the animal around 9:45 p.m. Saturday near the Winterdale Arch in the park, around West 82nd Street. Meehan, who was walking his dog Rufus and his friend’s dog Blue at the time, told them he was “99.9% sure [it] was a coyote. He followed us. I turned around and he was there. I got concerned. I snapped the picture and left.”

A coyote would not be surprising in these parts, as the Parks Department told Gothamist over the summer that coyote sightings have skyrocketed since the agency began tracking them. As of July, there had been 36 coyotes sightings, with 27 of those sightings clustered in Manhattan, particularly around the park. And in an incident last week, a coyote reportedly attacked a man at Rutgers University, leading officials to find a coyote den nearby.

As for what you should do if you run into a coyote while traveling to Zabar's, Meghan Lalor of the Parks Department told us the most important thing is not to panic, since the coyotes are likely as afraid of you as you of them: "If you cross paths with a coyote in New York City, respect them the same way you would any other New Yorker, and give them plenty of space. They just want the freedom to independently explore New York City too." She also said that you should never feed them: "Keeping coyotes wild is the key to coexistence," she said. If one does come up to you, she adds, "make yourself look bigger by putting your arms up, and make loud noises until the coyote retreats. Appreciate coyotes from a distance."

You can learn more useful coyote facts here. Check out our furry Exorcist-inspired coyote movie poster below.