Over the recent Christmas holiday, I was told this story about a coyote. I don’t think I would have believed it if it were a third hand tale, but it was witnessed by the teller while at work. He is a carpenter and often does work on the interior of airplanes. He looked out at the runway and saw a single deer running full speed down the strip. Kind of a strange place for a deer. But that wasn’t all that was running. He was being pursued by a coyote! The chase continued at full speed, but he could see the coyote losing ground. As the gap widened, the coyote seemed to know it was a loss and began to slow until he was at a walk. But rather than turn around or continue at a slow pace, he sat down! Right there on the runway! I wish I had that on video!
Here are some more interesting facts about coyotes. I italicized the one about Ohio coyotes since I did not know this!
– In 2006, a coyote was spotted in New York’s Central Park.
– Chicago claims to have over 2,000 coyotes living within the city area alone.
– Coyotes use at least 10 different sounds to communicate, not counting their familiar yapping howl.
– The coyote is an important spiritual symbol for many indigenous tribes. He is seen both as a trickster causing trouble and as a provider of many good things for this world. Both sides of coyote are true.
– They have 42 teeth in a strong jaw, which are perfect for holding and biting prey. Their senses of smell, sight and hearing are exceptional which makes them very cunning hunters.
– In the state of Ohio, coyotes do not prey on deer, other large animals or humans. The western variety of coyote has different characteristics than the Ohio coyote, where an abundance of small animals exist.
– In states with mountains, the coyote are more muscular.
– They do not hibernate and are very active during the winter months. Coyotes bed in sheltered areas, but do not use dens except when raising young, during severe weather or when they are being chased. Dens will have an entrance about a foot in diameter and are usually holes that have been used first by another animal like badgers or foxes.
– Coyotes can live and have adapted to virtually all types of habitat. From arctic to tropic, country to cities, desert to tundra.
– It is estimated that at least 400,000 coyotes are killed each year (one coyote is killed every minute) by federal, state, and local governments but also by private individuals.
– Coyotes can breed with both domestic dogs and wolves. A dog-coyote mix is called a “coydog”.
– Coyotes maintain their territory by marking it with urine.
– The great majority of coyotes don’t prey upon livestock. However, once a coyote learns that young livestock are easy prey, depredation can become a problem. If this occurs, removal of the offending coyote is often recommended.
Do you have a coyote story? Please share it in the comments!
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Facts provided by Coyote Hunting Info
http://www.coyotehuntinginfo.com/
