Jay Simpson: Emergent Naturecultures: Coyotes in NYC

Jay Simpson

Watch Presentation Video: https://stream.nyu.edu/media/Emergent+NatureculturesA+Coyotes+in+NYC/1_3loemmup

Emergent Naturecultures: Coyotes in NYC

Since 1995, coyotes have been known to reside in New York City, reflective of a national trend of increasing urban coyote residency, but little is known about coyotes’ impact on urban life and urban life’s impact on coyotes. This summer I began my thesis research by looking closely at four known coyote territories in the Bronx, Manhattan, and in Astoria, Queens. There, I used experimentation in sensory ethnography to focus on two questions: what constitutes my field site and who are my subjects? What emerged were contaminated and fragmented terrains and reflections on transgression and policing.