Steven Fuller is warning his neighbors.

The Barrington resident who lives in the Bay Spring neighborhood spotted a coyote just outside his home a few days before Thanksgiving, and thinks it may have been hunting. He said the animal did not back down when his dogs barked at it or when he hollered out. Only when he tossed a few pebbles in the coyote's direction did it scamper away.

"Totally brazen" was how he described the coyote, which appeared near his Greene Avenue home in the morning time.

Mr. Fuller said one of his neighbors also had an encounter with what appeared to be the same coyote later that daty. He said his neighbor was walking his dog near Allin's Cove after the sun had set when they happened upon the coyote.

"He was scared," Mr. Fuller said of his neighbor, "and (he's) lived around here for a long time."

Mr. Fuller said he shared news about the coyote sightings on a neighborhood website — he was concerned about families in the area who may have young children. He said he wanted them to be aware of the situation.

"We've got plenty of kids in our neighborhood," he added.

The Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management offers information about coyotes on its website. It states that coyotes can make their homes in all sorts of places and have a territory range of 5 to 25 miles.

"Coyotes are innately shy, but can become emboldened due to unnatural human interaction, such as feeding," stated the website.

It was not clear whether someone in Bay Spring or another nearby neighborhood may have been feeding this coyote intentionally, or unintentionally.

"Coyotes are opportunistic and will eat nearly anything from food scraps in the garbage, to pet food, to compost or carrion," stated the site, adding that the animals are omnivores and their natural diet includes rabbits, squirrels, fruits and berries. "It's much easier for a coyote to pick food from a trash can than it is for them to hunt, even though it may not be more nutritious. The more food resources humans supply through unintentional feeding, the larger the packs may be, because their breeding capacity is closely linked to the resources available to them."

Coyote mating season runs from December through March.

The DEM website states that seeing a coyote is not cause for alarm.

"If you see a coyote, it may just be on its way. If the coyote stops or is inquisitive, remain calm, make loud noises, try to look big and intimidating, and slowly back away," stated the site. "Do not attempt to approach the coyote or turn and run away."

DEM officials ask that if a coyote attempts to approach someone, that person should get indoors and then call DEM at 401-222-3070 to report the incident.

Mr. Fuller said he has seen other coyotes in the area in the past, but this encounter was different.

"We've seen these before, but not so brazen," Mr. Fuller said.