Wildlife in Brooklyn

A thoughtful, witty editorial appears in today's New York Times, in which the author relates his recent encounters with a pair of wily raccoons at his home in Brooklyn. 

He writes:

The miniature forest behind my house startled us recently by disgorging a pair of raccoons. They had scaled a perimeter fence at the far end of the block and ended up at my reflecting pool. I was still asleep when the animals touched down in the yard, but a neighbor later described one of them as roughly "the size of a small bear."

As the news spread, houses went into lockdown. Cats and small children were swept indoors. Windows were shut tight. I got caught up in the moment and dialed 911. The emergency operator was cordial, but said that police officers didn't like raccoon duty. The operator at 311, the city's help line, asked if my raccoons where "rhabeet."

I gathered this much: We were on our own with raccoons, unless they were frothing at the mouth.

The appearance of the raccoons in New York City surprised the author, Brent Staples, and he decided to investigate their invasion of Brooklyn.  After "canvassing the neighborhood," he learned that the pair's "brethren had been closing in on [his] patch of ground for a few years now."

Ultimately, Staples is left to ponder what it means to come across wild animals in an urban environment like Brooklyn.  He concludes:

The shock is metaphysical. The raccoons are bringing an unadulterated wildness into a place where nature has traditionally been neutered, domesticated and kept on a very short leash.

I love this editorial, and it reminds me that nature, wildlife, and wildness can be found everywhere -- you merely need to pay attention to your surroundings. 

(Sidewalk flower photo by RahelSharon on Flickr)

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