Have you seen one of these around Beacon Hill lately? Photo by mybulldog via Creative Commons/Flickr.Neighbor Paul Zilly writes:
My brother and I were taking our morning run a couple of weeks ago, and my hat was snatched off of the top of my head mid-stride by what I believe to be a great horned owl! The incident took place at 6:30 AM on Cheasty Blvd .S. at the southeast end of the golf course. Neither of us saw the perpetrator at the time—we just heard a faint swooping sound behind us. I felt something glance off of the side of my head, and my hat was gone. We initially thought it was a crow since we had seen a family of crows at that same spot a couple of days before. But yesterday, we saw the marauder close up. It was huge—a beautiful owl, two-feet tall. It had just flown into a tree directly behind us, perhaps ready to strike again? I’m wondering if anyone else in the neighborhood has had a similarly eerie and quite wonderful experience.
Coyote in the city. Photo by Dru Bloomfield.Recently neighbors have posted reports of coyotes to the Beacon Hill Mailing List. Neighbor Heather wrote, “Saturday, at 7 p.m. there was a huge coyote in my backyard. I live on 12th Ave. S. and Stevens St. All my animals are accounted for, but I feel lucky to say the least… Just thought anyone on the hill would want to know.”
Another neighbor, Jean, replied: “They visit me too… 20th and Bayview. Keep your kids (pets) inside at night. Pleez!!”
“Coyotes are curious but timid animals and will generally run away if challenged. However, remember that any wild animal will protect itself or its young. Never instigate a close encounter.”
Photo of a city deer by micklpickl.Most of us probably don’t think of Beacon Hill as home to forest wildlife such as deer. There are occasional deer sightings, however, usually near one of the greenbelts. Neighbor Tom wrote to us last week about a deer that got a to a more unusual location:
“This past Saturday at around 4:00 am I was just south of South College and 15th South when I heard some noises in some bushes of an apartment on the west side of the street. All of a sudden, and I kid you not, a deer jumped out of the bushes, crossed over 15th and into the yard of a house across the street. I could not believe my eyes.”
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Kerrie Carbary at Volunteer Chore Services sent us an appeal for volunteers:
“Volunteer Chore Services, a program of Catholic Community Services, is a “safety net” for elders and adults living with disabilities who are unable or ineligible for state/paid chore services. All recipients are low-income, have health problems or difficulty with mobility, and most live alone. A growing volunteer opportunity in your neighborhood consists of driving clients to doctor appointments, grocery shopping or other chores. We carefully match volunteers to opportunities based on their personalities, neighborhood, and preferences.
“Currently, volunteers are donating over 3000 hours a month in the Seattle area. However, there is still a huge number of people waiting for help, and a shortage of volunteers. Volunteers are needed all over Seattle and South King County, but especially in areas like South Seattle.”
For more information on volunteering through this agency, call Kerrie at 206-328-6858, Volunteer Chore Services main intake line at 206-328-5787, or email kerriec@ccsww.org.
The event is “pay what you can,” but suggested donation is $100. Those who attended the first fundraiser are invited to come without obligation to donate again. To reserve your spot and get the address of the event, email info@bardelcorso (please put RSVP in the subject line).
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As part of Seattle Night Out on Tuesday, August 3, the Jun Hong Kung Fu and Sports Association is hosting an event that evening from 7:00 until 9:00. There will be a Lion Dance performance, a Kung Fu demonstration, and coconut ice cream. Please bring a dessert to share. All are welcome! The Jun Hong Kung Fu and Sports Association is located at 4878 Beacon Avenue South.
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Application has been made to the city’s Department of Planning and Development (DPD) to subdivide two sites, at 4010 and 4012 14th Avenue South, into five unit lots each. For more information, see the website here and here. The commenting deadline is August 1.
Hi Wendi & Jason,
We live at 20th and Lander and found an attacked blackish brown cat this morning.  We think it was killed by a wild animal last night sometime but didn’t hear anything.  We don’t recognize as one of the regular cats around and it doesn’t have any tags but looks too well groomed to be feral. We’ve already called Animal Control and they said they’ll be up to remove the body. We have a picture of the face (not too gruesome, but not postable either).  We can e-mail it to anyone who thinks that it might be theirs.
Thank you,
Patrick & Leigh
You can reach Patrick at pnelson101@gmail.com.
There are quite a few wild animals in and around the Hill, including some coyotes. We hope your pets are safe and sound.
