MONICA MACOUBRIE
Nebraska Game and Parks Commission
Although “urban wildlife†might sound contradictory, a lot of wildlife can be viewed from a backyard, city park or downtown Omaha or Lincoln.
These animals have gone beyond tolerating humans. They’ve moved on to thriving in urban areas because of human presence.
Although these animals live among humans, they mostly go unnoticed. Animals like pigeons or squirrels at bird feeders are common sights. But occasionally we might glimpse a fox in a backyard or a turkey crossing an elementary school crosswalk.
Wildlife can be successful in urban areas because many animals utilize human food sources. Humans are messy; they leave a lot of food in trash cans and pet food outside. They also love to see cardinals visiting bird feeders. These human practices leave a lot of extra food around for urban mammals and birds to thrive.
We categorize urban wildlife in four ways: as human obligates (those attached to humans), as exploiters and associates, as adapters, or as avoiders. These categories correlate to how urban wildlife benefit or are harmed by human’s influence on a habitat.
Human obligates: These often are domestic animals that disturb, compete and prey on native species. This interaction can drastically affect the function and diversity of wildlife in and on the fringes of human development. An example of this is domestic cats, especially outside cats, which are known as the top killer of songbirds. They have made considerable negative impacts on native and migratory bird species.
Human associates and exploiters: Human food sources can be a garden, garbage can, pet food left outside or domestic animals. The exploiters can have much higher populations in urban settings than in the wild due to the availability of human-supplied food. People have mixed emotions about these animals. Songbirds are positively regarded when they visit a feeder. On the other hand, predators that come in and kill pets likely have a negative association. Human exploiters and associates include opossums, raccoons, starlings, Eurasian-collared doves, crows and house mice.
Human adapters: This type utilizes human resources to survive, but they necessarily don’t receive any added benefit from living with humans. They have adapted their behavior to tolerate humans. These animals often are found on the perimeter of developments. Examples include deer, bobcats, coyotes, American robins, red foxes, striped skunks and red-tailed hawks.
Human avoiders: These animals are not expected to use urban areas but may find themselves around humans when migrating or dispersing. These usually have a history of conflict with humans and/or have specific habitat requirements for their reproduction strategies. They also might have unattainable foraging habits in human areas. Normally, this group has extremely high mortality rates or decreased reproductive rates in urban environments. Mountain lions fall into this category, as they usually avoid humans but occasionally come into contact.
The best ways humans can avoid conflicts with urban wildlife is to reduce the attractants for unwanted animals. Lock trash cans, dispose of fruit that falls from trees, keep pets indoors — especially at night — keep livestock in a covered enclosure at night, and use bird feeders that are designed to not spill or to be inaccessible to nontarget species.
Wildlife can be present in the largest cities, and scientists find urban wildlife fascinating to study. As we learn more about the biodiversity in our cities and how to maintain healthy ecosystem functions, hopefully we can find new ways to reduce property damage and encourage positive associations with urban wildlife.
Photos, videos: Critters in the streets and yards of Lincoln
WATCH: Coyote in driveway on South 57th in Lincoln
Coyote in trash
Deer
Wildlife near 76th and Van Dorn
Plains leopard frog
Baby owl and wood ducks
Turtle on South 86th Street
Coyote off Sawgrass Drive
Wilson's phalarope (female)
Ducks on Rancho Road
Coyote
Woodchuck
Political ducks?
Pioneers Park ducks
Golf wildlife
Upton Grey Lane and Thompson Creek
Ducks in yard
WATCH: Baby fox on Yankee Hill Road near 27th
Turkey time
Heron on Bowling Lake
White moth on Runza drive-thru on West O in May 2019