University of Connecticut

Residential Coyotes: Connecticut’s own Wild Dog

By Rhonda Twiss

Most of us have heard them in the distance, when a wild serenade of shrill yips and excited barks awakens us from a sound and secure sleep. Some of us have been fortunate enough to see them on the peripheries of an open field, or darting quickly across a busy roadway. I have had good luck spying one individual under the backyard apple tree in the early morning light, when the unharvested fruits have fallen to the ground. My resident coyote is fairly blonde in color, and my neighbors and I discuss “our dog” with familiarity. Are we all sighting the same coyote? Well, in ultimate New England fashion, it’s hard telling not knowin’. Usually coyote fur is mottled with shades of gray, red, brown and cream with a white underbelly and dark fur along the spine that steers to a black tipped tail. The blonde in our neighborhood could be the same individual patrolling his or her home range, or a small familial group that exhibits genetic relatedness through similar pelage, or fur, coloration. No matter if the local population is one or more, I feel privileged to catch a glimpse of this elusive canine and I secretly cheer for them to thrive.

Not all Connecticut citizens are as encouraging as I am when it comes to the coyote presence. There is some concern regarding how adapted the coyote has become at living in close proximity to humans and how talented the coyote is at utilizing anthropogenic, or human derived, food sources. 

First of all it is important to realize that the coyote has not always been a Connecticut “resident”. Prior to European colonization coyotes were primarily distributed in the mid-western prairies where they prospered in the grasslands and the forest outskirts.

  G. Parker

In the late 1800’s coyotes began to extend their range by following the trail of edge habitat created by gold miners and American settlers.

G. Parker

By the early 1900’s coyotes started a northeastern migration up into Canadian territories and then south across the St. Lawrence River into New York state and later, by the 1950’s, into the northwestern portion of Connecticut where the coyote became an established species by the late 1960’s.  

With nearly 40 years of adaptation and assimilation into Connecticut habitats coyote populations are healthy and robust. The species has proven to be successful at inhabiting nearly every type of environment, even densely human populated areas. The coyote owes its triumphant success primarily to fact that it can eat most any food available and continue to survive and multiply.

It has been said that a coyote will eat anything it can chew. This humorous approach to the typical coyote diet does hold some validity when considering the broad scope of their nutritional routine.

http://www.midnr.com

What the coyote eats can range from fruits and vegetables, to garbage and insects, carcass scavenging, the occasional house pet, pet food, bird seed, livestock and hunted prey. Prey species include small mammals, particularly rodents, rabbits and occasionally they can and do kill deer. We don’t need to worry about coyotes becoming problematic in residential areas if we are vigilant in preventing them from acquiring food from us and associating humans with filling their bellies. For coyotes, hunting and consuming small mammals is an environmentally stable strategy, they shouldn’t modify their food habits unless humans make new ways of attaining nutrient needs easy and reliable.

Most of the time, coyotes will go out of their way to avoid humans, but as people expand their living areas and coyotes continue to utilize edge habitat created by disturbance, contact between “us and them” is inevitable. The issue of dealing with coyotes will not be solved by removing them. Dispatching or relocating a coyote individual rarely brings the desired outcome as another coyote will eventually take over the home range and the next coyote could be more problematic to humans than the last. The only practical solution is education and prevention, with a primary goal of coexistence. Unless coyotes are truly a nuisance or a danger to you and your family they should be left alone. If you feel it is necessary to deal with a problem coyote always contact a professional wildlife manager for advice and help with the situation.

To prevent coyotes from becoming further habituated to humans and human occupied areas please follow these tips:

1.     Never feed coyotes intentionally or unintentionally. Be aware of possible sources of food in your yard.

2.     Do not leave uneaten pet food outside.

3.     Do not discard edible garbage where coyotes can get into it.

4.     Secure garbage containers and eliminate their odors. Use a small amount of ammonia or cayenne pepper in the garbage

        to discourage scavenging.

5.     Restrict use of birdseed. Coyotes are attracted to seed, and to the birds and rodents that use the feeder.

6.     Wherever possible, eliminate outdoor sources of water. Be aware that coyotes will prey on coy fish if the fish do not have

        proper cover or a deep enough pond.

7.     Trim and clear ground level shrubs that can provide cover for coyotes.

8.     Use fencing to help deter coyotes. The fence must be at least six feet tall with the bottom extending at least six inches

        below ground level.

9.     Actively discourage coyotes by making loud noises. Motion detector lights and alarm systems can also help from keeping

        coyotes out of your yard.

10.    Pick fruit as soon as it ripens and keep rotted fruit off the ground.

11.    Scattered mothballs and ammonia-soaked rags strategically placed may deter coyotes from entering your yard.

12.    Keep cats and small dogs indoors, allowing them outside only under strict supervision.

13.    Keep chickens, rabbits and other small animals in well-protected areas and in sturdy cages at night. Cages made of

         chicken wire are meant only for keeping small animals contained, not to keep coyotes out!

14.    Coyotes are attracted to, and can mate with unspayed or unneutered domestic dogs. Unspayed female dogs in season

         will attract male coyotes, and unneutered male dogs can be lured away by the scent of a female coyote. There have been

         cases of male dogs being lured by the female coyote's scent and then killed by male coyotes.

15.    If you do not mind sharing your space with coyotes, enjoy observing them with binoculars when they visit.

Coyotes are shy and a lot of patience is required to observe them. Coyotes will appear most often during the hours close to sunrise and sunset. In urban areas, coyotes may be a little bit bolder. Do not attempt to approach a coyote. It will most likely run away, but any cornered or frightened wild animal can be dangerous.  Most importantly enjoy the brief and fortunate opportunity to observe one of the wild kingdom’s most amazing creatures. We all have something to learn form the coyote’s adaptable and undefeatable nature.

Information was provided by the Connecticut Department of Environmental Protection Wildlife Fact Sheets, Desert USA Fund for Animals, G. Parker’s Eastern Coyote: The Story of its Success, and the California Center for Wildlife.