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The coyote snuck up and bit the man on his calf while he was smoking a cigarette outside and talking on the phone outside his truck at a shopping center on Paradise Road around 6:15 a.m. police said.
The man quickly grabbed a wooden plank from his truck and chased the coyote off into a nearby wooded area, police said. The man refused medical treatment and appeared to have gotten himself checked out, police added.
Authorities said they saw a coyote in the surrounding area after the attack and it did not not appear to be sickly, police also told Daily Voice. However, Swampscott Animal Control is said to be investigating, according to Boston25.
Swampscott Police said they have seen similar attacks before and expect them to happen more frequently with the summer months ahead.
The Department of Fisheries and Wildlife has more information about coyotes in Massachusetts and ways to prevent conflicts with them on their website.
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