Increased wildlife indicates a healthy ecosystem, yet marine life may still be at risk on Staten Island

STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. — Throughout the years, Staten Island has seen a continuous increase in wildlife and is no stranger to the overpopulation of turkeys and deer. However, in recent months, animals foreign to Staten Island have appeared on beaches and in residents’ backyards.

Kenny Bazemore, of Mariner’s Harbor, submitted a video of a family of foxes near Richmond Terrace. Bazemore says he saw another fox in the exact location around the same time last year.

“As you can see in the video, they were just doing their own thing,’’ Bazemore said. “They were just playing in the grass, and you know, it was just a very exciting moment for me.”

He moved from Brooklyn two years ago and says he has seen more wildlife since coming to Staten Island. “You don’t see much of that at all in Brooklyn,’’ he said.

Seals have been spotted in Fort Wadsworth waters, and even whales have been seen off Staten Island’s shores.

The uptick in wildlife sightings is positive news, said Amber Krauss, a field technician with the city Parks Wildlife Unit. “Staten Island is host to a rich diversity of wildlife,’’ Krauss said. “Healthy wildlife can be used as an indicator of a healthy ecosystem.”

That may not be the case globally.

Despite indications of a healthy ecosystem on Staten Island, the 2022 Living Planet Report said there was a 69% decrease in monitored wildlife around the globe since 1970.

For marine life specifically, the waters around New York City have improved in recent years, according to Paul Sieswerda, executive director of Gotham Whale, a city whale research and advocacy organization. Cleaner water brings more fish inshore, attracting its predators, like whales and seals. Sieswerda started Gotham Whale in 2009. When he first started documenting whale sightings in the early 2000s, numbers were in the single digits, he said. Now, there are a couple of hundred sightings a season.