KALAMAZOO COUNTY, MI — Colony Woods residents knew coyotes lived nearby in the Gourdneck State Game Area, Jeri Kazeks said.

Now the animals are walking their neighborhood streets.

Ring doorbell cameras first captured the animals late last summer, she said. In the fall, they heard them.

The howling is so loud, she said, it drowns out TV and conversations inside of homes.

Coyotes moved in after the May 7, 2024 tornado decimated the trees between 12th Street and U.S. 131 just south of Centre Avenue/Q Avenue, Kazeks said.

Brush and fallen trees on the Portage-owned land sat untouched while residents cleared properties across the street in Texas Township.

The German Shepard-sized animals are nesting on the Portage side of 12th Street, but Texas Township yards fall within their 3-mile territory, Kazeks said.

The animals don’t care which city they’re in.

Brush piles attract mice, squirrels and other small animals that coyotes eat, said Rachel Lincoln, spokesperson for the Michigan Department of Natural Resources.

A small stream also runs through the north side of the neighborhood, Kazeks said.

“If a coyote has a water source, brush and food sources, that’s home,” Kazeks said. “Well, that’s exactly what we have right now.”

Coyotes can be found in all 83 counties in Michigan, per the DNR, including urban and suburban areas.

“Urban wildlife management is a complex subject, and there are no quick-fix solutions,” said Portage City Manager Pat McGinnis.

The animals have a natural fear of humans, Lincoln said.

That hasn’t stopped them from trotting right down driveways, Kazeks said. She fears for the safety of her three Boston terriers.

“They’re getting so comfortable and wandering through our neighborhood,” Kazeks said. “We’ve got so many small children around here and so many pets.”

Coyotes pose the greatest a risk to pets, Lincoln said, as they can’t discern between a pet canine or another coyote canine when defending their den. Otherwise, they feed on animals people consider “pests.”

“I don’t want them as my neighbor,” Kazeks said.

Coyotes are typically spotted in the open during the late winter and spring breeding season, Lincoln said. They will return to places where food is easily accessible.

Brush piles, birdfeeders and backyard barbeque are all easy targets.

The best thing people can do is scare the animals away with loud sounds, she said, and remove food sources.

Portage applied for a Consumers Energy grant to fund brush cleanup, said Texas Township Supervisor JoAnne McFarland O’Rourke. She wrote a letter of support.

They didn’t get the money, she said.

“As time goes on, there is increasingly less momentum for figuring out solutions and people are left with these large expanses of broken landscape,” O’Rourke said.

Lisa Elander’s home overlooks a swath of fallen trees. The quotes to remove them have been as high as $200,000.

“It’s a safety hazard. It’s a fire hazard,” Elander said. “We’ve got coyotes coming in further because they are starting to nest in the trees, let alone mice, rats and whatever else is in there.”

Texas Township officials have not awarded large amounts of relief funds to residents, Kazeks said.

Recovery resources were available to residents in the immediate aftermath of the tornado, Kazeks said. Now, residents feel they must fend for themselves.

“We call ourselves a tree city, but we have no plans for when the trees come down,” Kazeks said. “It really surprises me and others that there really isn’t a plan for this or a budget for this.”

MLive photographer Devin Anderson-Torrez contributed to this story.

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