| Coyote |
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| Additional
Predator Species
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| Coyote |
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 Habitat |
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Arizona's premier predator
is also an important fur resource. Found
throughout Arizona, the coyote is probably
the state's most familiar animal. Even where
coyotes are not often seen, campers can hear
their choruses of howls, yelps, and barks
on almost any night. The animal's pointed
ears, narrow nose, generally brown coat color,
and black-tipped tail, which is usually held
downward, help differentiate coyotes from
dogs and wolves. The head and body length
of coyotes is about 2 ½ to 3 feet with the
tail adding another foot or so. Adult males
are larger than females, the two sexes averaging
about 21 and 17 ½ pounds, respectively. A
very large male may attain a weight of 35
pounds. Contrary to popular belief, coyotes
do not readily interbreed with either dogs
or wolves.
Natural History
Coyotes are opportunists, feeding mainly on small mammals, but also on
carrion, bird eggs, and vegetable matter such as manzanita and juniper
berries. They also prey on pronghorn fawns, dead fish, and insects when
such items are available (This is a peculiar choice of options). In urban
areas, garbage, domestic cats, and small dogs are sometimes taken.
Coyotes form strong pair bonds, usually breeding between mid-January and
March 15. After a two-month gestation period, from one to several young
are born in a den or burrow; the average litter size being about five pups.
The pups are fed regurgitated food by both parents. They leave the den
when about 8 to 10 weeks old.
A coyote's home range may encompass up to 12 square miles during the spring
and summer, with individual animals roaming up to 100 miles or more. Besides
the ever-present threat of starvation, coyotes are also susceptible to
diseases such as rabies and mange and human-caused mortality.
Hunting and Trapping History
The sport harvest of coyotes has been relatively stable during the past
10 years, about 13,000 hunters taking an average of between 30,000 and
40,000 coyotes a year. Most of these animals are taken while "varmint calling," while
hunting other game, or simply as opportunities arise. Formerly, trappers
rivaled sport hunters in the number of coyotes taken, but the reported
take of trapped coyotes during the past 10 years has averaged only a little
more than 1,000 a year-a far cry from the yearly harvests of 10,000 or
more coyotes reported in the late 1970s. Although some of this decline
may be due to coyote population vagaries, the principal reason for this
reduced take is undoubtedly a decline in trapping effort. |
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