Canis latrans

Coyote in the California mountains.

The coyote (Canis latrans, from the Nahuatl coyotl, "howling dog") is a species of carnivorous mammal of the Canidae family. Coyotes are only found in North America, Central America, and recently South America; from Canada to Colombia. It inhabits a great diversity of ecosystems, tropical, temperate and arid. Its name comes from the Nahuatl word cóyotl (AFI /ˈkojo:tɬ/). Although they sometimes gather in herds, they are generally solitary. They live on average 6 years. They are not at risk. Despite being heavily hunted, coyotes are one of the few large animals that have expanded their range since the European conquest of the Americas. They have occupied areas in North America previously inhabited by wolves, and have adapted to eating trash and pets.

Description

The coyote is less than 60 cm tall, and its color ranges from gray to tan, sometimes with a reddish tinge. The coyote's ears and muzzle appear long in relation to the size of its head. It measures between 74 and 94 cm in length, without the tail, and weighs from 8 to 16 kg. It can be identified by its bushy, broad tail that is often carried close to the ground. By its slender appearance it can be distinguished from its larger relative, the gray wolf, which can weigh from 35 to 80 kg. The coyote is a very skinny animal and may appear malnourished at first glance even if it is in good health.^{[citation needed]}

Behavior

Coyote (left) and wolf (right).

Coyotes are very adaptable in many places. Their behavior can vary greatly depending on their habitat, but in general they live and hunt alone or in monogamous pairs, looking for small mammals, especially shrews, voles, and rabbits; as well as insects such as beetles, ants and grasshoppers. It is omnivorous, adapting its diet to available sources, including fruits, herbs, and other vegetables.

Coyotes mate for life. Mating takes place around the month of February, and litters of 4 to 6 pups are born around the end of April or beginning of May. Both parents—and sometimes the juveniles, born the year before, that have not yet left the paternal den—help feed the pups. At three weeks old they leave the den under the supervision of their parents; when they reach eight to twelve weeks of age their parents teach them to hunt. Families stay together throughout the summer, but the young leave to find their own territories in the fall. They usually move about ten miles away. The young are sexually mature at one year of age.

Territorial and refuge behaviors

Individual feeding territories range in size from 0.4 to 62 km² (0.15 to 24 square miles), and the overall concentration of coyotes in any given area depends on the abundance of food, suitable feeding grounds, burrowing and competition with conspecifics and other predators. The coyote generally does not defend its territory outside of the burrowing season, and is much less aggressive towards intruders than the wolf, usually chasing and fighting with them but rarely killing them.[88] Conflicts between coyotes can arise in times of scarcity. of food. Coyotes mark their territories by urinating with raised paws and scratching the ground.

Like wolves, coyotes use a den, usually the abandoned holes of other species, to gestate and raise their young, though they may occasionally give birth under sagebrush in the open. Coyote burrows may be located in canyons, drains, hills, riverbanks, rocky cliffs, or flat terrain. Some burrows have been found under abandoned cabins, barns, drain pipes, railroad tracks, hollow logs, brush, and thistles. The female continually digs and cleans the burrow until the young are born. If the burrow becomes disturbed or infested with fleas, the pups are moved to another burrow. A coyote burrow may have several entrances and passages branching from the main chamber. A single burrow may be used year after year.

Communication

It is much more common to hear a coyote than to see it. The calls that coyotes make are high-pitched; they are described as howling, squealing, yelping, and barking. These calls can be one long rising and falling note (a howl) or a series of short notes (a "squeal"). These calls are usually heard at twilight or at night, and less frequently during the day.

Although calls are made year-round, they are most common during the spring mating season and fall, when cubs leave their families to establish new territories. The howl is deceptive; due to the characteristics of the sound at a distance, the coyote may appear to be in one place, when it is actually somewhere else.

Subspecies

The following subspecies are recognized:

• Canis latrans latrans
• Canis latrans cagottis
• Canis latrans clepticus
• Canis latrans dickeye
• Canis latrans frustror
• Canis latrans goldmani
• Canis latrans hondurensis
• Canis latrans impavidus
• Canis latrans incolatus
• Canis latrans jamesi
• Canis latrans lestes
• Canis latrans mearnsi
• Canis latrans microdon
• Canis latrans ochropus
• Canis latrans peninsulae
• Canis latrans texensis
• Canis latrans thamnos
• Canis latrans umpquensis
• Canis latrans Vigis