I live in a densely populated area south of Los Angeles. We don’t have any large fields within 15 miles of where I live. We have a storm drain that cuts through the city that acts a bit like a wildlife corridor for some species mainly raccoons and coyotes. Recently coyote spotting’s have increased dramatically and dogs and cats are disappearing on a somewhat regular basis. Prior to the coyote outbreak the last 10 years have shown a dramatic increase in Raccoons. It got to the point I was seeing sometimes 10 or 15 raccoons each evening.
Since the coyotes showed up the raccoons seem to have all but disappeared. I have always doubted we had as many coyotes as some believe. One coyote can make a dozen appearances in one evening miles away from each other. They travel a lot. My theory is that the raccoons attracted the coyotes and now that they are all but gone the coyotes will likewise start showing up less frequently and there is really nothing the neighborhood people need to do to curb the activity of the coyotes.
Some of the neighborhood people are trying to form some kind of groups to get rid of the coyotes and I just don't see a need for it.
We’ve been unintentionally breeding certain species like coyotes and raccoons for tolerating living in proximity to people, because the ones that couldn’t tolerate it are losing their habitat and failing to reproduce in great numbers.
Meanwhile, those that have adapted are reproducing their adaption, and finding a source of food in garbage cans and pets in areas pretty much free of larger predators.
Yes, there are more coyotes and raccoons in urban areas.
If people want to get rid of the coyotes they have to get rid of the coyote food - that means don’t leave garbage around, keep your pets locked up, and secure your chicken coops. Ditto for the raccoons.
I think it’s common for coyote populations to boom where there’s food supply and then dwindle, but not disappear. That should be common for any environment vis a vis predator and prey. The trouble with coyotes is that they are versatile, they don’t only eat wildlife, they go after pets when the wildlife is unavailable. They’re wily animals (no joke intended), they’re smart ambush predators, they can carry rabies and mange, you don’t want them in your neighborhood. I don’t know if there’s an easy way to get rid of them though. Trapping seems to be the usual method employed in urban areas, and not that effective that I’ve seen around here.