Coyotes
Scientific Name: Canis Latrans
Life Cycle: June young (6-8) are being hunted for at an incredible pace.
Habitat: almost everywhere. Coyotes can live in suburban areas, rural
areas and can even be found in cities.
Diet:garbage, compost, cats, pet food, fruit, grill drippings and other
artificial food sources to supplement their natural diet of rodents, rabbits,
woodchucks, snakes, insects, berries and carrion.(Source MassWildlife)
Please read below: One question that we are always wondering about is why is
it that reporters are quick to blame trappers for the problems with foothold
traps, but when an animal that could have been trapped by a foothold mauls a
child, we hear no condemnation of animal rights groups? We at WDC find the media
to be hypocritical on this issue.
#Are Coyotes Dangerous? #Preventing
Conflicts with Coyotes #Coyote Attack Follow Up Bibliography
on Coyotes #Farmer Loses Prized Calf to Coyote
Here is one letter we got!
We have a home in South Lake Tahoe, California.
We have 1/4 of an acre. We do not live there but go once a month.We have a coyote
problem. They are living in the woods behind our house.We chase them away but
they return. My large golden retreiver was out one night and she was barking
frantically, I rushed out and she was on our large deck with three coyotes in
a semi circle in front of her. She backed up to me still barking and I yelled
at the coyotes, and they left. I also have three grandchildren that come up
and love to run around the forest behind our house. What can we do to get rid
of these predators. Tahoe is not big on shooting them, someone mentioned mountain
lion urine.Thank you
#Are Coyotes Dangerous?
Yes, if you live in an area where they are
not controlled through lethal means.
See Animals in The News For more documentation
WDC receives various inquiries from people concerned about coyotes. We are
pleased to provide a press release on this topic from the Division of Fisheries
and Wildlife. We hope it will be helpful to you.
SIDE BAR: Frank Miniter published an excellent article entitled "Preying
on People in the February, 1999 issue of Outdoor Life pp. 49-54. In that
article he cites that coyote on human attacks are becoming more frequent for
a number of reasons. First, people have banned trapping. Second, people have
begun feeding them (whether purposefully or through carelessness). Third, coyotes
are beginning to see people as food. The solution is to keep making sure
that coyotes see humans as a threat and not a food resource.
CAPE COD COYOTE ATTACK UPDATE 7/31/98
Commonwealth of Massachusetts Division of Fisheries & Wildlife
Wayne F. MacCallum, Director For Immediate Release Contact: Bill Davis Phone:(508)
792-7270 ext. 153 Fax: (508) 792-7275 E-mail bill.davis@state.ma.us
Most importantly Dan Neal, the 3 year old victim of an attack
by an eastern coyote in Sandwich, is home and recovering from bites, scratches
and abrasions inflicted by the animal. Results from the Department of Public
Health showed the animal was negative for the rabies virus, meaning that the
boy will not have to undergo a series of injections. The coyote carcass has
been taken by the Division of Fisheries and Wildlife (DFW) for necropsy
at the Tufts University School of Veterinary Medicine in Grafton.
Today, veterinarians will conduct a physical exam, take
radiographs and visually inspect internal organs to determine the animal's general
condition at the time of the attack. Preliminary results indicate the coyote,
an adult male weighing 40 lbs., had a healed fracture on the right foreleg.
According to Dr. Mark Pokras of Tufts, the healing was complete suggesting the
injury had occurred more than a year previously.
Division biologists are working to determine why this animal
was seen regularly in the Sandwich neighborhood and ultimately became aggressive.
"Food is the key in more than 90% of coyote - human interactions."
according to Susan Langlois, Furbearer Biologist for the DFW. "Coyotes
lose their instinctive wariness of people when they begin to associate food
with a human presence. They come to expect a handout from people or to find
food around houses. This changes their natural behavior and results in reports
of coyotes following and approaching people or lingering in backyards. The final
stage is aggression which can be a bite triggered by a person trying to hand
feed a coyote or an attack stimulated by a sudden movement or noise."
In addition to the food theory the possibility exists that
an injury or disease may have prevented this animal from hunting and scavenging
naturally. The animal's mouth, teeth, stomach and digestive tract will be checked
for abnormalities. Its behavior may have also changed as a result of prior human
contact. Had this animal been kept and raised illegally when it was young it
may have developed a dangerous bond with people. The release of such an animal
back into the wild could have led to a situation like the one in Sandwich.
We recently spoke with Sue Langlois Fur Bearer Biologist in Massachusetts)
on the phone (9/3/98) about the coyote attack. We had heard a rumor that suggested
that the homeowner actually cared for the coyote. Ms. Langlois replied that
there was no evidence to support this rumor. She continued and said, after all
the investigation there was no clear signs at why this coyote attacked. She
noted that the neighborhood was well kept and that the coyote was most likely
living on mice and rodents. Her best guess was that this particular coyote was
just naturally more aggressive.
 This
poor innocent calf was mauled by a coyote. Note the rear of the calf, with red
streaks. This is where this calf was attacked by a coyote. This attack took
place in August of 1998 at Jim Casavant's farm in Oxford, MA. The calf
had to be destroyed. In case you were wondering the calf was valued at $1,400.
Do you think the anti groups or the state would compensate the farmer for his
economic loss? This is yet another reason why Question 1 (for more info click
politics of Trapping) was a tax on farmers.
(photo and info used with permission.
Disclaimer: WDC seeks to provide accurate, effective and responsible information
on resolving human/wildlife conflicts. We welcome suggestions, criticisms to
help us achieve this goal. The information provided is for informational purposes
only and users of the information use it at their own risk. The reader must
consult state/federal officials to determine the legality of any technique in
the reader's locale. Some techniques are dangerous to the user and to others.
WDC encourages readers to obtain appropriate training (see our informational
literature at our Store ), and understand that proper animal damage
control involves patience, understanding that not every technique/method works
for every situation or even 100% of the time. Your use of this information is
governed by this understanding.
We welcome potential users of the information
and photos to simply ask for permission via e-mail. Finally, WDC welcomes
e-mail but understand that all e-mails become property of Wildlife Damage Control.
6/21/02
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