New York City – as a metropolitan hub of vibrant diversity, inclusion and accommodation – has long been lauded for the opportunity and support it has provided to individuals of all backgrounds and beginnings. However, one of Mayor de Blasio’s recent initiatives caters to an entirely different class of New Yorkers – New York City’s urban wildlife!
WildlifeNYC represents a collaboration between the Mayor’s Office, NYC Parks, Animal Care Centers of NYC, the Department of Health and Mental Hygiene and several other city agencies. Through media campaigns and resource dissemination, the program aims to educate the New York City community about the presence of urban wildlife while offering strategies for safe and peaceful coexistence between human and non-human city dwellers.
Deer, coyotes, raccoons, and red-tailed hawks are all included in the list of over 600 native non-human animal New Yorkers that call the five boroughs home, and that have returned to the city in increasing numbers as environmental conditions and city green space have become more hospitable to them. In fact, many species such as the red-tailed hawk even serve useful city roles, like city rodent control, through their natural rat predation.
While the proliferation of wildlife is a good sign for the health of our urban ecosystems, their growing populations have brought to light several concerns. For instance, although white-tailed deer have been welcomed as a whimsical sight in New York City, it is estimated that over 2,000 deer currently live on Staten Island – a 9,000% increase in herd size from 2008! This overabundance has begun to pose problems and risks to city communities, as Staten Island has seen a spike in deer-related vehicular accidents, experienced overgrazing of native flora, and is worried about the potential link between rising deer populations and higher rates of tick-borne illness in humans. To mitigate these risks, New York City has embarked upon a comprehensive deer vasectomy program that hopes to dramatically, and ethically, reduce deer herd size across Staten Island by 10-30 percent each year.
For many human New Yorkers, the initial novel charm of spotting deer gallivanting around the five boroughs has faded, as they are now more concerned with addressing the threat to public and ecological safety that deer and other wildlife may present. This highlights the necessity of WildlifeNYC as a resource to reassure the public that management efforts are underway and that public opinion is actively being acknowledged and considered. It also keeps the public from taking matters into their own hands, and illegally hunting wildlife – which can further put human lives at risk. By engaging people through allowing them to submit accounts of wildlife sightings, participate in wildlife related volunteer projects, and attend events pertaining to wildlife, WildlifeNYC is connecting New Yorkers to the urban wildlife around them!
As an urban wildlife resource plan, WildlifeNYC encourages both sustainability and safety, and is keeping the Concrete Jungle wild at heart!
