Officials said the attacks could be caused by displacement of the animals or drugs.
Canada conservation officers are worried about a string of recent coyote attacks in a Vancouver park, saying that the behavior is unusual for the animals and could be caused by several different factors.
In the last four days, there have been three separate coyote attacks in the city’s Stanley Park, People reported. On Friday, a man was bitten by a coyote near the park’s golf course, CTV News reported. Before that, two more attacks resulted in a woman and children getting bitten.
Stanley Park has, in general, been reporting encounters with aggressive coyotes in recent months and park officials are now saying that it may be difficult for humans and coyotes to co-exist in the area, People reported.
Shelley Alexander, a University of Calgary professor and coyote expert, told CTV Morning Live that several things could be to blame, including the increasing homeless population in the park, which may have displaced some coyotes.
Other factors could include coyotes accidentally ingesting opioids. She also said there is some “indication of possible abuse of these animals.”
"This is abnormal behavior that we're seeing, but the key thing is here they've lost their bite inhibition, and so this is no longer a situation that you could consider a co-existence scenario,” Alexander told the station.
Alexander is now warning people who visit the park to stay aware. She also noted that park goers who come into contact with a coyote should yell, clap and use items like an umbrella to scare the animal off.
