Category Archives: animal wildlife

Coyote Meeting On Wednesday

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Rescheduled from a previous date, there is a meeting this Wednesday for residents of central Richmond neighborhoods who are experiencing coyotes.

It takes place at the Patrick Henry School on Semmes Ave., starting at 6:30 pm. Dept Game & Inland Fisheries is hosting.

From FaceBook event page:

Join a community conversation on coyotes living in the City of Richmond. Wildlife experts will have lots of information on coyote ecology and behavior, wildlife regulations, and how to best deal with wildlife in our back yards.
Please share, with neighborhood groups, associations, and neighbors along the river and near the James River Park System. We want your questions and feedback!

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Urban Wildlife Camera Project

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From Science in the Park webpage:

In the spring of 2014, we set out to catalog the biodiversity, or the number of different species, found within the James River Park System. Healthy and diverse habitats support healthy and diverse groups of plants and animals, but the animals in our park can be elusive and often go unseen. To catch them on video, we set out special “game cameras” that record a video when triggered remotely by motion or temperature. Scientists use these cameras to track and monitor wildlife or to record how a species behaves, and our animal friends did not disappoint! For almost a year, we recorded hundreds, if not thousands, of videos that reveal the animals that call our park home — some common and others that may surprise you …!

If you enjoy these photos and videos, you may want to join the Urban Wildlife_JRPS FaceBook page to stay updated with the latest…

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Birds Bring Economic Vitality to Cities, New Study Finds

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Many Oregon Hill residents love having birds in the neighborhood and recognize how lucky we are that we get a lot bird traffic due to nearby James River Park and Hollywood Cemetery, which serve as havens for wildlife and important stops for bird migrations.

A new study published last month in the journal Urban Ecosystems tries to determine what economic value residents in two comparable cities place on having birds in their backyards and parks.

From an article on the study:

“This paper shows that our interactions with birds actually have a pretty high economic return to the community where you live,” said John Marzluff, a University of Washington professor of environmental and forest sciences and the paper’s co-author. “We know that having a livable, green community that attracts birds also increases the value of homes in that area. This paper shows there’s an economic service birds are providing.”

It’s something to consider as development pressures and increased riverfront activity come to bear. There is a lot at stake.

Neighbor Featured In Newspaper Editorial

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Check out the great editorial in today’s Times Dispatch that features Oregon Hill’s own “Renaissance Man,” and Cherry Street neighbor Todd Woodson.

Todd was Correspondent for the Day with an eloquent letter asking Richmond to ban the use of bullhooks on circus elephants be banned in Richmond. Todd inspired a City Council resolution, still under consideration, to ban bullhooks on elephants in Richmond. This impending resolution was in part responsible for the Ringling Bros. circus to announce that they will retire their elephants by 2018.

To quote from today’s lead editorial:

Todd Woodson attended the March 4 event honoring The Times-Dispatch’s 2014 Correspondents of the Day. His Sept. 29 letter called on Richmond to ban the use of bullhooks when training circus elephants. On March 5, Ringling Bros. announced it would phase out elephant acts. It cited changing attitudes among the reasons for its decision. Woodson expressed sentiments embraced by a growing number of Americans. He made a difference.

After the Ringling Bros. announcement, Woodson forwarded an excerpt from Dostoyevsky’s “The Brothers Karamozov”: “Love the animals: God gave them the rudiments of thought and an untroubled joy. Do not trouble them, do not torment them, do not take their joy from them. Do not go against God’s purpose. Man, do not exalt yourself above the animals: they are sinless.”

Woodson also is one of central Virginia’s most accomplished jazz musicians. The designation “Renaissance Man” applies to him.”