---
title: "What the sources say about the Coyote | AnimalTracks.wiki"
description: "58 claims from the Coyote profile, each beside the words of the source that backs it."
image: "https://animaltracks.wiki/images/animals/coyote-1.webp"
canonical: "https://animaltracks.wiki/animals/coyote/sources/"
---

# What the sources say about the Coyote (*Canis latrans*)

> 58 claims from the Coyote profile, each beside the words of the source that backs it. A "..." marks a cut in a quote and [brackets] an insertion.

Profile: [Coyote](https://animaltracks.wiki/animals/coyote/)

## Canis latrans (coyote). Animal Diversity Web, University of Michigan.

https://animaldiversity.org/accounts/Canis_latrans/

| The page says | The source says |
| :--- | :--- |
| Forests, grasslands, deserts, swamps and mountains | Coyotes are extremely adaptable and use a wide range of habitats including forests, grasslands, deserts, and swamps. (note: mountains from ADW's Terrestrial Biomes list for the species (taiga, desert or dune, savanna or grassland, chaparral, forest, scrub forest, mountains); the current gese-patterson-2025 agrees: "diverse ecosystems from deserts to high mountains to major metropolitan areas") |
| plus farmland, suburbs and cities | Coyotes, because of their tolerance for human activities, also occur in suburban, agricultural, and urban settings. |
| its howl call, one of 3 distinct calls, is a quick series of yelps followed by a falsetto howl | using 3 distinct calls (squeak, distress call and howl call) which consist of a quick series of yelps, followed by a falsetto howl (note: vibe.reason; a description of the call, not a record, so the ADW date caution does not bite) |

## Coyote. Yellowstone National Park, U.S. National Park Service, 2025.

https://www.nps.gov/yell/learn/nature/coyote.htm

| The page says | The source says |
| :--- | :--- |
| The Song Dog | a group of coyotes demonstrates why they're also known as "song dogs." (note: gese-patterson-2025 also: "The coyote was once known as the defiant song dog of the U.S. West") |
| North America's mid-sized wild dog | Coyotes (middle) are larger than red foxes (front) and smaller than wolves (back). |
| That puts it between a red fox and a wolf, at about a third of a wolf's size with a slighter build. | Often mistaken for a wolf, the coyote is about one-third the wolf’s size with a slighter build. |
| A Third the Size of a Wolf | the coyote is about one-third the wolf’s size (note: section heading) |
| In Yellowstone National Park, coyotes live about six years on average, and up to 13 | Average life span 6 years; up to 13 years in the park. (note: scoped to Yellowstone, as the page is; replaces a 1988 figure (esf-coyote, 18 years potential) that no current source repeats) |
| in Yellowstone they mostly eat voles, mice, rabbits and carrion | Primarily eat voles, mice, rabbits, other small animals, and carrion (note: scoped to Yellowstone: gese-patterson-2025 says primary prey varies (rodents in western North America, wild ungulates in the few tropical studies)) |
| for a dog that talks over distance | communicate with each other by a variety of long-range vocalizations (note: vibe.reason; replaces 'lonesome midnight desert howling', which argued from place and mood (#176)) |
| In Yellowstone, coyotes that learn habits like roadside feeding can turn aggressive toward people, and the park has recorded a few attacks | They quickly learn habits like roadside feeding. This may lead to aggressive behavior toward humans and can increase the risk of the coyote being hit by a vehicle. Several instances of coyote aggression toward humans, including a few attacks, have occurred in Yellowstone. (note: body; the sentence stats.dangerLevel: Medium rests on (tiers are capabilities: attacks have occurred, and no cached source reports a serious injury or a death, so Medium)) |

## Spotted! A Coyote and Badger Hunting Together. U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, Open Spaces Blog, 2016.

https://www.fws.gov/news/blog/index.cfm/2016/11/2/Spotted-A-Coyote-and-Badger

| The page says | The source says |
| :--- | :--- |
| Coyotes and American badgers sometimes team up to hunt prairie dogs and ground squirrels. | Coyotes and badgers are known to hunt together and can even be more successful hunting prairie dogs and ground-squirrels when they work in tandem. ... They will sometimes hunt together; but they also often hunt on their own. (note: the only badger in North America is the American badger; the photo on the page was taken at the Black-footed Ferret Conservation Center) |
| The coyote can chase down prey that bolts, and the badger can dig out prey that dives underground. | The coyote can chase down prey if it runs and the badger can dig after prey if it heads underground into its burrow systems. |
| Together, the pair outruns and outdigs the rodents it hunts. | Together they are both faster and better diggers than the burrowing rodents they hunt. |
| A Two-Species Hunting Team | Coyotes and badgers are known to hunt together (note: blockquote lead-in: a label naming the pairing, not a statement of how often it happens; the sentence under it carries the source's "sometimes") |
| Yes, sometimes. | They will sometimes hunt together; but they also often hunt on their own. |
| Coyotes and American badgers are known to team up to hunt prairie dogs and ground squirrels, and the partnership makes both better hunters. | Coyotes and badgers are known to hunt together and can even be more successful hunting prairie dogs and ground-squirrels when they work in tandem. Studies have shown that this unusual relationship is beneficial for both species. |
| The coyote can chase down prey that bolts, while the badger can dig out prey that dives underground. | The coyote can chase down prey if it runs and the badger can dig after prey if it heads underground into its burrow systems. |
| Between them, the pair outruns and outdigs the rodents they hunt. | Together they are both faster and better diggers than the burrowing rodents they hunt. |

## Gese & Patterson (2025). Chapter 28: Coyote. Wild Furbearer Management and Conservation in North America.

https://doi.org/10.59438/zfeu9294

| The page says | The source says |
| :--- | :--- |
| has faced more than 150 years of large-scale culling | The coyote has been the focus of large-scale population-control efforts for >150 years |
| still spread from Alaska to Panama | yet it has expanded its distribution beyond its known historical distribution and now exists south of the Panama Canal and far north into Canada and Alaska (note: "still" is the source's "yet": the spread came despite the population-control efforts, not because of them) |
| from Alaska and Canada south to Panama | now exists south of the Panama Canal and far north into Canada and Alaska |
| Rabbits, rodents, insects, deer fawns, fish, wild fruit, carrion, and whatever a suburb leaves within reach | coyotes are omnivorous generalists with a high diversity in diet ... including fish, insects, lagomorphs, small mammals, ungulates, and vegetation (note: fawns, fruit and urban food from the same chapter (see the body claims); rabbits, rodents and carrion from nps-yellowstone-coyote ("Primarily eat voles, mice, rabbits, other small animals, and carrion")) |
| Flexibility in food, behavior and social life | shows their breadth and plasticity in behavior, food habits, and social organization |
| hunting alone for small prey and in groups for deer | Predicted optimal prey size of coyotes is approximately 45% (6– 8 kg [13– 18 lb]) of their body mass ... prey species that are larger than coyotes (e.g., adult white-tailed deer) may be killed, and coyotes can more easily kill large prey when hunting in groups (note: flag settled: the superpower lists what coyotes can do, and the body gives the hedges ("predicted", "may not be worth", "can"); the same chapter adds that "In populations where deer and elk are available, large packs of ≤10 individuals may form") |
| spreading across North and Central America as people cleared land | Coyotes greatly expanded their distribution beginning around 1900, which was facilitated by land clearing and the population decline of larger predators (e.g., gray wolves) associated with European colonization |
| wiped out wolves, its bigger competitors | the large-scale extirpation of larger competing carnivores (e.g., gray wolves |
| adults weigh 20 to 35 pounds (9 to 16 kilograms) | adults weigh 9– 16 kg (20– 35 lb) |
| males usually about 4 pounds heavier than females | males usually about 2 kg (4 lb) heavier than females |
| measure 47 to 59 inches (120 to 150 centimeters) from nose to tail tip | Total body length varies from 120 to 150 cm (47– 59 in) |
| A Menu With Few Limits, and Rules About Bigger Prey | coyotes are omnivorous generalists with a high diversity in diet (note: section heading; the prey-size rules are the claim on optimal prey size below) |
| Coyotes are carnivores that behave like omnivores | Although technically carnivores, coyotes are omnivorous generalists |
| the menu also runs to fish, insects | including fish, insects, lagomorphs, small mammals, ungulates, and vegetation |
| deer fawns | fawn consumption by coyotes followed predictions of optimal-foraging theory |
| wild fruit | the high rate of consumption of fruit by coyotes during summer |
| whatever a suburb leaves in reach, from garden vegetables to trash cans | Urban areas may provide wild species of prey, but also anthropogenic sources of food such as domestic pets and pet food, garbage, and fruit and vegetable gardens (note: flag settled: "may provide" is about what a town offers; the next sentence says coyotes use it: "coyotes in urban areas typically exhibit greater use of anthropogenic food items than coyotes in rural or forested areas", and the page says "whatever a suburb leaves in reach", not that every coyote eats it) |
| They rarely bother with birds or eggs. | but rarely birds or bird eggs |
| A coyote's ideal prey is predicted to weigh about 13 to 18 pounds, just under half its own weight: for a coyote hunting alone, anything heavier may not be worth the energy it takes to catch, and brings a greater risk of injury. | Predicted optimal prey size of coyotes is approximately 45% (6– 8 kg [13– 18 lb]) of their body mass ... prey weighing >8 kg (18 lb) may not be energetically advantageous for solitary coyotes to capture and may also pose greater risk of injury to coyotes |
| Team up with the rest of the pack, though, and coyotes can bring down a full-grown deer between them. | prey species that are larger than coyotes (e.g., adult white-tailed deer) may be killed, and coyotes can more easily kill large prey when hunting in groups |
| A 150-Year War It's Winning | The coyote has been the focus of large-scale population-control efforts for >150 years (Young and Jackson 1951, Andelt 1987, Knowlton et al. 1999), yet it has expanded its distribution (note: section heading: 150 years of control efforts, and the range grew anyway) |
| People have run large-scale campaigns to cull coyotes for more than 150 years | The coyote has been the focus of large-scale population-control efforts for >150 years |
| yet the coyote has kept spreading | with the continued southward expansion of its distribution |
| its range now runs from Alaska and Canada south past the Panama Canal | now exists south of the Panama Canal and far north into Canada and Alaska |
| beyond the western deserts, mountains and plains where it historically lived | The coyote historically occurred in the western two-thirds of North America, including the Pacific-coastal, mountain, intermountain, desert, and Great Plains regions (note: flag settled: "beyond" is the source's own word, in its introduction: "it has expanded its distribution beyond its known historical distribution") |
| Part of that spread traces back to wolves | The expansion of their geographic distribution has been facilitated by landscape modifications and the large-scale extirpation of larger competing carnivores (e.g., gray wolves (note: "part of": the chapter names landscape modification as the other cause) |
| A continent with fewer wolves left more room for coyotes to move into. | The expansion of their geographic distribution has been facilitated by landscape modifications and the large-scale extirpation of larger competing carnivores (e.g., gray wolves (note: paraphrase of the source's stated mechanism; nps-yellowstone-coyote says the same of the park: "wolves’ absence opened a niche that coyotes could partially occupy in Yellowstone") |
| Shooting and trapping usually dent their numbers only briefly | Local population control temporarily decreases abundance on a short-term basis (note: flag settled: paraphrase, "only briefly" for "temporarily ... on a short-term basis"; "usually" carries the chapter's "typically ephemeral") |
| thin out a coyote population, and coyotes from nearby move in, more young females start breeding, litters grow larger, and numbers quickly climb back | The effects of lethal removal of coyotes are typically ephemeral because normal demographic responses, including recolonization and immigration from adjacent areas, increased prevalence of breeding among younger females, and increased litter sizes, will quickly increase the population to levels commensurate with habitat conditions. (note: flag settled: "typically" is carried by "usually" at the head of the same sentence, before the colon) |
| The name coyote comes from the Aztec word *coyotl*, meaning "barking dog," | The common name of coyote was originally from the Aztec word coyotl, meaning barking dog |
| its knack for learning to dodge many population-control efforts fits the trickster reputation Native Americans gave it | The ability of the coyote to learn and avoid many population-control measures (Young and Jackson 1951, Knowlton et al. 1999) demonstrates its adaptability and is consistent with the reputation described by Native Americans as the trickster. |
| Because the effect usually doesn't last. | The effects of lethal removal of coyotes are typically ephemeral (note: flag settled: "because" answers the FAQ's "why" with the chapter's own finding; "usually" is its "typically") |
| Coyote litters average three to seven pups but can run as large as twelve | Litters average 3– 7 pups (range = 1–12) |
| when hunting or trapping thins out a population, coyotes from nearby move in, more young females start breeding, litters grow larger, and numbers quickly recover | The effects of lethal removal of coyotes are typically ephemeral because normal demographic responses, including recolonization and immigration from adjacent areas, increased prevalence of breeding among younger females, and increased litter sizes, will quickly increase the population to levels commensurate with habitat conditions. (note: flag settled: "typically" is carried by the answer's first sentence, "the effect usually doesn't last"; "recover" is the chapter's "to levels commensurate with habitat conditions", so the old question's "make it bigger" was cut) |
| packs howl to advertise their territory | Howling plays a role in territorial maintenance and spacing of packs by advertising territorial boundaries (note: vibe.reason) |

## Berger & Gese (2007). Does interference competition with wolves limit the distribution and abundance of coyotes? Journal of Animal Ecology.

https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-2656.2007.01287.x

| The page says | The source says |
| :--- | :--- |
| which can hold coyote numbers down | supports the hypothesis that competition with wolves limits coyote populations (note: "can", not "usually": gese-patterson-2025 says outcomes were variable, "ranging from complete extirpation of coyotes by wolves to localized changes in abundance of coyotes to increases in their population after population recovery of wolves") |
| coyote densities ran a third lower where wolves were abundant in Grand Teton National Park | Mean coyote densities were 33% lower at wolf-abundant sites in GTNP |
| fell 39 percent in Yellowstone once wolves were reintroduced there | densities declined 39% in Yellowstone National Park following wolf reintroduction |

## Kays (2018). Canis latrans. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2018: e.T3745A163508579.

https://doi.org/10.2305/iucn.uk.2018-2.rlts.t3745a163508579.en

| The page says | The source says |
| :--- | :--- |
| Least Concern | IUCN Red List category: Least Concern (LC). |