MIAMI – It’s been more than 24 hours and we still do not know why the decision was made to euthanize a coyote that was rescued from Biscayne Bay only to be euthanized after.
Zoo Miami’s Ron Magill said he’s among those confused by the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission’s decision.
“They could be opening Pandora’s box,” he said. “What you’re saying is nuisance animals are all eligible to be euthanized.”
Magill said the decision to euthanize the coyote is baffling.
“This is an adaptable animal,” he said. “It is not proven to show any detriment to the environment. On the contrary, it could be actually beneficial to the environment in that it hunts rodents.”
In addition to his work at the zoo, Magill also serves on the board of the Wildlife Rescue of Miami-Dade -- the group that had agreed to take the coyote in after it was pulled ashore by Miami-Dade firefighters on Tuesday.
“The president of the Wildlife Rescue of Dade County was contacted,” Magill said. “He actually supplied them with a cage to bring the animal to them (and) was expecting the animal to arrive there.”
But apparently the FWC had a change of plans and decided to put down the coyote instead, telling the rescue’s director that it’s a nuisance animal.
According to the FWC website, a nuisance animal is any animal that either causes property damage, presents a threat to public safety or causes annoyance around or in a building.
But their site also states that those animals can be released into the wild unless they’re non-native, which Magill said isn’t the case.
“They are not invasive, they are not introduced animals. These are naturalized animals,” he said. “These are animals that have naturally migrated into South Florida, just like they’ve migrated into Chicago and New York City.”
Magill said he’s waiting for the FWC to explain this decision.
He said the decision sets a dangerous precedent unless they found out the coyote was sick or too injured to live.
“If this coyote was euthanized because he was ‘non-native’ to Florida, one wonders how long coyotes must live in all 67 of the state’s counties before they’re considered native,” PETA Senior Vice President Lisa Lange said in a statement Wednesday. “Coyotes have been in Florida since the 1970s, and these resilient animals -- who have become an essential part of the ecosystem -- are here to stay. If the law tied the hands of the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, it’s time to take a long, hard look at that law.”
Local 10 News attempted to contact the FWC Wednesday for further comment about the decision to euthanize the coyote but has not yet heard back.