The Coyote in New York State
From the SUNY College of Environmental
Science and Forestry...
The coyote has been present in New York
state at least since 1920. As with its western
cousin, the eastern coyote has been the
object of much controversy as well as
curiosity.
Those who hunt deer view the coyote as a
competitor and a threat, while others believe
coyotes rely mainly on smaller mammals and
carrion for their diet. Some individuals are
concerned that the livestock industry,
particularly sheepherders, will suffer from the
coyotes’ presence. These concerns have
resulted in recent efforts, to date
unsuccessful, to remove all protection from
the coyote, and in some cases to pay bounties
to reduce their numbers or eliminate them.
Ecologists at the College of Environmental
Science and Forestry, and others in the
eastern United States and Canada have
learned a lot during the past 50 years about
this newest addition to our wildlife
community.
What are the Characteristics and
Lifestyle of New York Coyotes?
The eastern coyote is considerably larger than
its southwestern cousin. The largest
individuals are as big as smaller timber
wolves. Adults may range from 35-45 pounds
and some large males may exceed 50 or 60
pounds in body weight.
Eastern coyotes have a German shepherd-like
appearance, which sometimes leads to
confusion about their identity. Typically-
colored coyotes are grizzled gray on their
back, upper sides and neck. This distinguishes
them from most dogs, which are usually a
solid color. A small percent are black or
reddish-blond, the latter being the more
common deviation. Coyotes can be
distinguished from most dogs based on their
habit of carrying their tail at or below a
horizontal level when traveling. At a distance
it is more difficult to tell coyotes from wolves,
but up close, wolves have a more massive
head, less pointed muzzle and ears, and larger
feet.
Most coyotes breed during the month of
February. Their young are born 60-63 days
later, usually in a ground den (often a
renovated woodchuck or fox den), but
sometimes in hollow logs or rock caves. Litter
sizes vary from 2-10, with 5-6 being the
average.
Larger litters are usually born when coyote
populations are well fed or their numbers are
low. It is this tendency to produce more young
when populations are low that makes it
difficult to significantly reduce coyote
numbers. Scientists have found that it would
require removing nearly 70 percent of the
population every year to achieve sustained
population reduction.
Are They Really Coyotes?
Early reports of “coyotes” in the east were
often greeted with skepticism. Sometimes,
after seeing the animals ’ large size and
hearing their howling, people declared them
to be wolves. To further confuse the issue,
some animals were identified as “coydogs,” a
mix of coyotes and dogs.
Early studies, which used skull measurements
to identify species, suggested that most of
these animals were mostly coyote. These
studies also showed that some interbreeding
with wolves may have occurred. Recent
studies using DNA analyses clearly show that
hybridization with wolves has occurred, most
probably in southern Canada where
populations of wolves and coyotes adjoin
each other. Hybridization has similarly
occurred between coyotes and red wolves in
our southern states, but has not been reported
for coyotes and the larger subspecies of gray
wolves in the northwestern states, northern
Canada or Alaska. The degree of hybridization
varies among individual coyotes in New York
and adjacent New England states. Although
specimens of coy dogs were identified during
the early years of coyote colonization, recent
DNA analyses show no evidence of dog
genetic material persisting in our coyote
population.
Where Did These Coyotes Come From?
Coyotes gradually extended their range
eastward after wolves became extinct in the
eastern U.S. and southern portions of Canada.
Coyotes first appeared in the early 1900s in
western Ontario, in the 1920s in New York and
progressively later across New England until
their appearance in New Brunswick in 1975.
Young coyotes may disperse more than 100
miles from their birth place. This tendency to
disperse is the way they have expanded their
range and filled in voids within occupied
range.
Where Do Coyotes Now Occur? How
Many Are There?
Coyotes are firmly established throughout all
New York counties except Long Island and
New York City. Their numbers have been
estimated at between 20,000 and 30,000.
Coyotes are abundant throughout New York
state. As with most wildlife populations,
numbers will fluctuate over time as food,
weather and disease conditions change.
What Do Coyotes Eat?
Almost anything! Coyotes are opportunistic
and eat what is most available at a given time
or place within their range of tastes and can
change over time. Coyote diets in the
Adirondacks in the 1950s were dominated by
snowshoe hares and a variety of smaller
animals; they also included significant
amounts of insects and berries in late summer
and early fall. For the past 30 years deer have
dominated winter diets (80-90%); spring and
summer diets consisted mostly of deer
(50-60%) with lesser amounts of beaver,
snowshoe hare and insects and berries in late
summer. Diets in the 1970s in central New
York included only a small percent of deer and
were dominated by rabbits, woodchucks,
small mammals and fruit. Many recent
anecdotal reports suggest deer may now
comprise more of the diet than previously.
Are Coyotes a Threat to Deer or
Livestock?
Some people are convinced that coyotes are
limiting the abundance of deer, particularly in
the Adirondacks, and point to the finding that
deer are the predominant food of coyotes in
that region. But, deer numbers have
progressively increased in all Adirondack
counties from the 1970s to peak numbers in
the ‘90s. Although there is some evidence that
coyotes may limit deer numbers in certain
local situations, it is obvious that coyotes
have not limited deer abundance on a regional
scale.
Coyotes can be a significant problem to
individual sheep-raisers and may occasionally
kill young calves. Those who raise livestock
should recognize that coyotes are a potential
hazard and use guard dogs, fencing, pasture
management and other practices that
minimize opportunities for coyote
depredation. Farmers who suffer loss or
damage to livestock or pets are permitted to
eliminate the “nuisance” coyotes.
Uncontrolled domestic dogs are a much
greater threat, responsible for losses to
livestock far exceeding losses from coyotes.
Are Coyotes Dangerous to Humans and
Pets?
Although coyote attacks on people have been
historically rare, this concern is not
unwarranted in the light of more recent
events. Such attacks have become more
frequent as both coyote and human numbers
have increased and merged in space and have
been reported in several states (including New
York), but most notably in California. Attacks
have primarily occurred in suburban areas
where coyotes have lost much of their fear of
humans due to lack of pursuit and where
associated with an easy food source such as
garbage and pet food. In some cases, coyotes
had been deliberately fed. The best insurance
against coyote attacks is to 1) keep all
garbage or other foods safely secured, 2) keep
pets and their food indoors or safely secured if
out doors and 3) harass any coyotes which
come into your neighborhood by making loud
noises – shouting, starter pistol, alarm
devices, etc. If coyotes become persistent or
unfazed, lethal removal may be necessary.
Attacks on dogs in rural areas most often
occur during the coyote mating and pup
birthing period – January through June – as a
territorial defense behavior. Coyotes have
frequently closely followed and sometimes
attacked dogs when being walked by their
owners – and sometimes the owners. Coyotes
relish cats as food items.
Do Coyotes Have Positive Values?
The majority of speakers at a recent series of
public meetings throughout northern New York
expressed positive feelings about coyotes.
People enjoy hearing their evening
“ serenades,” observing them hunting the
fields in their neighborhoods or simply finding
tracks or other signs during their outdoor
travels. A growing number of sportsmen enjoy
coyote hunting, and coyote skins currently are
among the more valuable furs. Scavenger
animals in northern New York —foxes, fishers,
marten, ravens and even golden eagles—
benefit from coyote predation of deer through
increased food availability. Raven populations
were absent after the elimination of wolves in
northern New York and northern New England;
with the emergence of the coyote as a deer
predator, raven numbers have recovered.
Coyote predation on deer also may serve to
foster a healthier deer population and
ecosystem, particularly in remote areas where
very few people hunt. Many farmers are
delighted with the reduction in woodchuck
numbers on their farms following the arrival
of coyotes.
What is the Current Legal Status of
Coyotes in New York?
Coyotes have been listed as a game and
furbearing species in New York since 1976 and
are protected by the Environmental
Conservation Law. This law allows the state to
establish limited hunting and trapping
seasons, and the means of take, and to
monitor the take by means of a pelt-tagging
system. The coyote population is thriving and
well established statewide as a New York
resident.
Enjoy them when you see or hear them!http://z4mp1.blogspot.com/
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