While searching online for photos of urban wildlife, I keep coming across photos of graffiti that features wild animals. Sometimes the animals are rendered in an abstract form, sometimes quite realistically. And I started to wonder about whether this might be evidence of ecologist E.O. Wilson’s biophilia hypothesis–that human beings have an innate love and need for the natural world. Maybe street artists are attempting, consciously or subconsciously, to rehabilitate an environment that appears to be devoid of wildlife and nature (but, as NDN readers know, actually isn’t).
Something to ponder.
Regardless, I decided I would be remiss to leave out this singular population of urban wildlife from this blog. So… enjoy!
050913 - Ill-mannered nine-banded armadillos (Dasypus novemcinctus) in Portland, Oregon, USA (Photo: Todd Mecklem, Creative Commons license).
050213 - A swallow checks out street art in Paris, France (Photo: Gilles Klein, Creative Commons license).
042513 - Metrosexual rhino in Melbourne, Australia (Photo: j bizzie, Creative Commons license).
041813 - Vent inspection courtesy of a coot (Photo: Mathias Klang, Creative Commons license).
041113 - A curious whale wonders what it would be like to own a BMW in Wuppertal, Elberfeld, Germany (Photo: Werner Wittersheim, Creative Commons license).
040413 - The parrots of Cally Road, London, England (Photo: Katy Stoddard, Creative Commons license).
032813 - A shark swims upstream on a freight train in Pennsylvania, USA (Photo: Rob Swatski, Creative Commons license).
032113 - A snail asks a small favor in London, England (Photo: liborius, Creative Commons license).
031413 - Lizards evolving in Barcelona, Spain (Photo: rosa y dani, Creative Commons license).
030713 - Life is good for one-dimensional frogs in Stockholm, Sweden (Photo: Anu Koski, Creative Commons license).
022813 - Avian disapproval in Phoenix, Arizona, USA (Photo: cobalt123, Creative Commons license).
022113 - A Hawaiian monk seal (Monachus schauinslandi) gets an eye job at the Midway Atoll National Wildlife Refuge (Photo: USFWS Headquarters, Creative Commons license).
021413 – A panda (Ailuropoda melanoleuca) tribute band on tour in San Francisco, California, USA (Photo: David Ludwig, Creative Commons license).
020713 – Sea turtles (Chelonioidea) cruising down Chicago’s Hubbard Street in Illinois, USA (Photo: zol87, Creative Commons license).
013113 – A barn owl (Tyto alba) demonstrates residence flexibility in Laveen, Arizona, USA (Photo: Patrick Dockens, Creative Commons license).
012413 – A muskox (Ovibos moschatus) guards Hubbard Street in Chicago, Illinois, USA (Photo: Terence Faircloth, Creative Commons license).
011713 – A ring-tailed lemur (Lemur catta) leaps through the streets of Melbourne, Australia (Photo: Andrew J. Cosgriff, Creative Commons license).
011013 - A fox with no time for a Starbucks run in Notting Hill, London, England (Photo: Jorge Ferrer, Creative Commons license).
010313 - A crocodile (Crocodylus niloticus) attempts to escape the streets of Lisbon, Portugal (Photo: Anne Bollwahn, Creative Commons license).
122712 - A caribou (Rangifer tarandus) channels its inner chameleon in Quebec, Canada (Photo: Quinn Dombrowski, Creative Commons license).
122012 - A blue tit (Cyanistes caeruleus) finds a place to hide in Manchester,UK (Photo: audreym, Creative Commons license).
121312 - A sea turtle refuses to ask for directions (Photo: Jurriaan Persyn, Creative Commons license).
120612 - A European kingfisher (Alcedo atthis; aka common kingfisher) takes a look around in Wuppertal-Mirke, Westphalia, Germany (Photo: Werner Wittersheim, Creative Commons license).
112912 - Swimming down the Galloping Goose Trail in Victoria, British Columbia, Canada (Photo: nouspique, Creative Commons license).
112212 - Flitting around Glasgow, Scotland (Photo: spoiltcat, Creative Commons license).
111512 - A white rhinoceros (Ceratotherium simum) starts her family in Fortitude Valley, Brisbane, Australia (Photo: Jam Project, Creative Commons license).
110812 - A royal penguin (Eudyptes schlegeli) loitering in Cape Wanbrow, Oamaru, Canterbury, New Zealand (Photo: fras1977, Creative Commons license).
110112 - A snail slip-sliding away through York, UK (Photo: itspaulkelly, Creative Commons license).
102512 - A happy red panda (Ailurus fulgens) on holiday in Germany (Photo: Loaf, Creative Commons license).
101812 - A crab “shooting street” in Barcelona, Spain (Photo: mochapocky, Creative Commons license).
101112 - Bee-eaters (at least that’s my best guess) on holiday in Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA (Photo: essygie, Creative Commons license).
100412 - A Galapagos tortoise (Chelonoidis nigra), adapting to life far from home in East London, UK (Photo: bixentro, Creative Commons license).
092712 - How’s life in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, my little (black-capped) chickadee? (Photo: Tom Magliery, Creative Commons license).
092012 - Who’s afraid of the big bad wolf (Canis lupus)? Not the citizens of Manitoba, Canada. Obviously. (Photo: Travel Manitoba, Creative Commons license).
091312 - The manatees (Trichechus manatus) of Homosassa State Park in Florida, USA, fascinated by their first contact with a garden hose (Photo: Lori Erickson, Creative Commons license).
090612 - Life (of a fish) as art at the Spring Creek National Fish Hatchery in Underwood, Washington, USA (Photo: USFWS Pacific Region, Creative Commons license).
083012 - A (butter)fly on the wall in Amsterdam, The Netherlands (Photo: SNDR-Photography, Creative Commons license).
082312 – A hip-hop hippo (Hippopotamus amphibius) in Chicago, Illinois, USA (Photo: Tyra R., Creative Commons license).
081612 – Red kangaroos (Macropus rufus), emus (Dromaius novaehollandiae) and cyclists (Homo sapiens) going the wrong way on Mary Street, Newtown, NSW, Australia (Photo: Sri-the-Quack, Creative Commons license).
080912 - Lizard climbing the walls in Leeds, England (Photo: Ms. Alex, Creative Commons license).
080212 - A squadron of dragonflies armed and ready in Bogotá, Colombia (Photo: dj lu juegasiempre, Creative Commons license).
072612 - A primate jams to MP3s in Tamworth, Staffordshire, England (Photo: Elliott Brown, Creative Commons license).
071912 - A fish flies through the air with the greatest of ease at the Quai du Wault in Lille, France (Photo: Marko Rosic, Creative Commons license).
071212 - Chilean flamingo (Phoenicopterus chilensis) on holiday in Delshaven, Rotterdam, The Netherlands (Photo: Cariffiti, Creative Commons license).
070512 - Birds (possibly some kind of corvid, to my eye anyway) looking for action in Aventura, Florida, USA (Photo: Vanessa Penagos, Creative Commons license).
062812 - Froggy shreds the accordion in Tervueren, Vlaams Brabant, Belgium (Photo: allfr3d, Creative Commons license).
062112 - A rare South American tiger raises a family in São Paulo, Brazil (Photo: hollywoodsmile78, Creative Commons license).
061412 - Ant searching for a picnic site in Santiago, Chile (Photo: Marian Dörk, Creative Commons license).
060712 - Geckos (Gekkonidae) sunning on a wall in San Francisco, California, USA (Photo: Mayu Shimizu, Creative Commons license).
053112 - Turtles rumble in Cairo, Egypt (Photo: Gigi Ibrahim, Creative Commons license).
051712 - Deer dream of flight in Brooklyn, New York, USA (Photo: Wing’s Art, Creative Commons license).
051012 - A mutant frog learns that absolute power corrupts, absolutely, while living on a garage door in Port Perry, Canada (Photo: Andres Musta, Creative Commons license).
050312 - Scarlet tanager (Piranga olivacea), California dreamin’ in San Francisco, USA (Photo: Thomas Hawk, Creative Commons license).
042612 - Urban fox (Vulpes vulpes) in London, UK (Photo: Ross Ferguson, Creative Commons license).
041912 – A salamander chillin’ on a wall in Vienna, Austria (Photo: a_kep, Creative Commons license).
041212 – Giraffe (Giraffa camelopardalis) flash-mob in Celebration, Florida, USA (Photo: Jeff Krause, Creative Commons license).
040512 – A hedgehog (Erinaceus europaeus) guards all the goodies in Hamstead, England (Photo: David Gee, Creative Commons license).
032912 – Rainbow zebra (Equus spp.) standing out from the crowd in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia (Photo: Shannon Crees, Creative Commons license).
032212 – Sulking meerkat (Suricata suricatta) in Brussels, Belgium (Photo: Le.Mat, Creative Commons license).
031512 – A red fox (Vulpes vulpes) explores the end of the rainbow (Photo: Loaf, Creative Commons license).
030812 – Roe deer (Capreolus capreolus) on Rue Volta, Paris, France (Photo: Julian Bleecker, Creative Commons license).
030112 – Stag beetle (Lucanidae) in Vienna, Austria (Photo: a_kep, Creative Commons license).
022312 – European badger (Meles meles) in Ledbury, England (Photo: John Sheldon, Creative Commons license).
021612 – Urban deer under a bridge in Trent, Trentino-Alto-Adige, Italy (Photo: Niccolò Caranti, Creative Commons license).
020912 – Remote control giraffe (Giraffa camelopardalis) cleans up graffiti in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, USA (Photo: Barry Yanowitz, Creative Commons license).
020212 – French toco toucan (Ramphastos toco) in Vitry sur Seine, Ile de France (Photo: Michel Petit, Creative Commons license).
012612 – Bird o’ Tile outside The Owl Tree in San Francisco, California, USA (Photo: Ludovic Bertron, Creative Commons license).
011912 – Colorful wall bird in Santiago, Chile (Photo: simenon, Creative Commons license).
011212 – A great white land shark attacks traffic jams in San Francisco, California, USA (Photo: Keoki Seu, Creative Commons license).
010512 – A welcoming turtle in Toronto, Ontario, Canada (Photo: Francis Mariani, Creative Commons license).
122911 – 2D squirrel in Chicago, Illinois, USA (Photo: E. Bartholomew, Creative Commons license).
120811 – A koi swims through the sidewalk in San Francisco, California, USA (Photo: Thomas Hawk, Creative Commons license).
120111 – Indian elephant (Elephas maximus) in San Francisco, California, USA (Photo: Thomas Hawk, Creative Commons license).
112411 – Corrugated caterpillar in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada (Photo: Beth Taylor, Creative Commons license).
111711 – A graffiti bear (Ursus spp.) in San Francisco, California, USA (Photo: David Lytle, Creative Commons license).
111011 – A mosaic heron in Austria (Photo: Thomas Lieser, Creative Commons license).
110311 – Coccinelle (french for ladybugy) (Photo: Marylise Doctrinal, Creative Commons license)
102711 – Zebras (Equus spp.) galloping through Bombay, India (Photo: Kanishka Gangopadhyay, Creative Commons license).
102011 – A cheetah (Acinonyx jubatus) plays watchdog in San Francisco, California, USA (Photo: David Lytle, Creative Commons license).
101311 – Urban fish or urban fowl? Does it help to know they live in London, UK? (Photo: mermaid99, Creative Commons license)
091511 – Hedgehog, badger or raccoon? Decide for yourself the nature of this creature on a wall in Göteborg, Sweden (Photo: Eva Ekeblad, Creative Commons license)
090811 – African penguin (Spheniscus demersus) in Canada, a long way from home (Photo: Jason Michael, Creative Commons license).
090111 – Masonry frog in New York, New York, USA (Photo: shoehorn99, Creative Commons license).
082511 – Birds on a wire on a wall (Photo: SuziCatherine, Creative Commons license).
081811 – A back door lion (Panthera leo) in Toronto, Canada (Photo: Grant MacDonald, Creative Commons license).
081111 – Nesting with style in Brindleyplace, Birmingham, England (Photo: Paul Downey, Creative Commons license)
080411 - Sea life on the streets of Honolulu, Hawai’i, USA (Photo: Keoki Seu, Creative Commons license)
072811 – A street art swallow (Hirundinidae) soars through De Doornakkers, Eindhoven, The Netherlands (Photo: Karin Dirkx, Creative Commons license)
072111 – Hedgehog (Erinaceidae) in Buenos Aires, Argentina (Photo: Ian Gallagher, Creative Commons license)
071411 – Rainbow house sparrow (Passer domesticus) in Berlin, Germany (Photo: Adam Lederer, Creative Commons license)
070711 – Southern hemisphere fish and bird in Bogota, Columbia (Photo: Fernando Martinez, Creative Commons license)
063011 – An urban great horned owl (Bubo virginianus) watches over I-72 in Springfield, Illinois, USA (Photo: straightedge271, Creative Commons license)
062311 – Urban zebra in Adelaide, Australia (Photo: John Goodridge, Creative Commons license)
061111 – City spider, no idea where (Photo: txmx2, Creative Commons license)
052611 – Graffiti bear in Berlin, Germany (Photo: Anthony Tison, Creative Commons license)
051911 – Yellow-banded poison dart frog in Aeschenpl, Basel-City, Switzerland (Photo: Andreina Schoeberlein, Creative Commons license)
051211 – An aboriginal wall lizard in Melbourne, Australia (Photo: Proper Dave, Creative Commons license)
050511 – A chalk rabbit in Heimolen, North Brabant, The Netherlands (Photo: René van Belzen, Creative Commons license)
04282011 – Newsprint coyote in Seattle, Washington, USA (Photo: Thomas Hawk, Creative Commons license)
04212011 – Asphalt lizard in Melbourne, Australia (Photo: Nick Southall, Creative Commons license)
04142011 – Concrete sea turtle, location unknown (Photo: Locace, Creative Commons license)
04072011 – Sidewalk fish in San Francisco, California, USA (Photo: Christopher Matson, Creative Commons license)
03312011 – French bird (Photo: Môsieur Jérôme, Creative Commons license)
03242011 – Urban fox in Brussels, Germany (Photo: Shelley Bernstein, Creative Commons license)
03172011 – City lizard in Catalonia, Spain (Photo: Toni Kaarttinen, Creative Commons license).
03102011 – Magic carpet bird in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia (Photo: Andrew Bulhak, Creative Commons license)
03032011 – Oryx (Oryx dammah, at least that’s my best guess) riding public transportation in Berlin (Photo: Stijn Nieuwendijk, Creative Commons license).
02242011 – British love birds (Photo: Andy Proctor, Creative Commons license)
02172011 – Urban red squirrel in Dresden, Germany (Photo: Andre Weise, Creative Commons license)
02102011 – Subway owl, New York City, USA (Photo: Kristi Jenkins, Creative Commons license)
02032011 - dumpster raccoon, Canada (Photo: Pearl Pirie, Creative Commons license)
01282011 – urban hummingbird, East London, UK (Photo: bixentro on http://www.flickr.com, Creative Commons license)
Urban deer under a bridge in Trent, Trentino-Alto-Adige, Italy (Photo: Niccolò Caranti, Creative Commons license)Urban deer under a bridge in Trent, Trentino-Alto-Adige, Italy (Photo: Niccolò Caranti, Creative Commons license)
