Where the Wild 

Things Were

Bright eyes in a sleek head
and long, painted muzzle, its
tail a generous red torch, the
fox startles at the sound of
human approach and swiftly
abandons its casual reconnaissance
of trails it knows so intimately.
Generations of foxes have been 
familiar with the urban wooded
ravine, where stealthier coyotes
navigate within its steep gorges
seldom to be seen by hikers.
Before the woodland trails 
hosted so many curious bipedal
nature lovers those who ventured
there in fewer numbers satisfied
their aspirations to encounter
wildlife when the foxes merely
stood their ground and quizzically
examined the presence of
intruders, strange yet seemingly
non-threatening. With dread
urban sprawl has arrived those
free-to-run-wild companion dogs
large and larger, looking for
challenges of the case. Now,
they challenge the presence of
wildlife, and they give chase
-- hence the wary red fox.