‘Not something you see every day:’ Reactions to coyote sighting at UTRGV’s Edinburg campus
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**Editor's Note: The video above misidentifies the student as Aracelli Vega. Her name is actually Aracelli Vela.
With the first week of the spring semester underway at UTRGV, students are expecting to see friends and professors around campus.
On Tuesday, Aracelli Vela was walking to her dorm on the UTRGV Edinburg campus when she spotted a coyote.
"It's definitely not something you see every day," Vela said. "I was wearing my headphones just walking around, and then I turned my head and there it was."
Vela captured a video of the coyote in the middle of campus.
"At first I was like, 'oh this is a very majestic creature.' And then after a few seconds I was like, 'this is a wild animal, maybe I should go inside,'"Vela said.
UTRGV biology professor Kenneth Pruitt said the coyote sighting is not surprising.
Coyotes roam the Rio Grande Valley, and have large home ranges.
“Coyotes are in the area, they're very numerous around here,” Pruitt said. "And with all the changes we've been putting on as far as moving out into their habitat, there’s bound to be some that move through."
UTRGV’s Edinburg campus has been growing a park for native plants on the west side of campus that attracts native birds and has the potential to bring in more wildlife.
“It's definitely bringing in wildlife, at least temporarily,” Pruitt said. "Most likely the coyote was just using it as a place to rest during a cold spell."
UTRGV officials said this is the first report of a coyote on campus. Spokesperson Patrick Gonzalez says they'll contact authorities to capture the coyote if it's spotted again
Pruitt said people don't need to be concerned.
“Coyotes aren't as wary of people as some of the other predators are, but they still don't like people too much,” Pruitt said. "They tend to stay away, the biggest concern is probably is for small pets."
Watch the video above for the full story.
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