Skip to main content
MORE

Coyotes are here to stay!

Coyotes have been in Florida since the 1970s but still feel like a relatively new species for many. In this episode, Shannon and Lara explore the latest research, facts, findings, and realities of living with coyotes.

  • Show Notes

    Learn more:

    How You Can Help:

    Sources for this Episode:

    • Dr. Martin B. Main, Department of Wildlife Ecology and Conservation, University of Florida
    • Angeline Barker, Certified Wildlife Biologist®, Biological Administrator I, Wildlife & Habitat Management Section, Division of Habitat and Species Conservation, Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission
    • Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission – Coyotes - https://myfwc.com/wildlifehabitats/profiles/mammals/land/coyote/
    If you enjoyed this episode, please consider sharing it with a friend who might enjoy learning about Florida's natural areas and the wild things that live here!
    If you're active on iNaturalist, consider joining our iNaturalist project, Naturally Florida's Listener Observations, here: https://www.inaturalist.org/projects/naturally-florida-s-listener-observations

Episode Transcript:

SHANNON:
On one of our recent episodes, we were discussing terminology surrounding native, non-native and invasive species and how we can talk about those things. Well, one of the terms that we brought up was “range change.” And to give you an example of range change, we used a number of species. Today we're going to talk about one of those species, coyotes.

And we're going to really explore everything there is to know about coyotes in Florida and how they epitomize this term of range change. Right, Lara?

LARA:
Yeah, for sure. And I can talk all day about coyotes, so I'm going to try and stay on track. But yeah, they’re one of the really common species that is brought up, as Shannon mentioned, related to range change, because historically, we're talking here in Florida, they weren't always here. Their historic range, their natural range, was like central United States and western United States.

And then they did this range change thing, which we’ll talk a little bit more about, (LAUGHTER) you know. They expanded to the Northwest and the Northeast and then most recently out east and south. They have been documented in every single county in Florida. So there's no escaping them.

SHANNON:
They are everywhere. (LAUGHTER)

LARA:
And just briefly, we generally talk about their range change, there’s a couple of factors that played into it. Probably number one was the eradication of wolves because of their negative impact on livestock. Out West, there was government programs to eradicate wolves, which presented a great opportunity for the coyotes to kind of fill that niche. And also at that time, there was a lot of agricultural expansion.

And that kind of cleared landscape really aided coyotes to expand their range and broaden where they occupy. And they actually kind of prefer more open habitats. And we'll talk a little bit more about that later on.

SHANNON:
Yeah. So what Lara's saying is we opened up a spot in the food web, right? We got rid of a large predator, and now there was a bunch of prey in a habitat that looked like where they wanted to be, right?

LARA:
Yeah, exactly. And we'll talk about, too, like the role that coyotes are now. They're doing a similar thing here in Florida. And I don't know if you want to go there now.

SHANNON:
Sure. Why not? Let's try it.

LARA:
So, again, historically important, we used to have wolves here, believe it or not. We documented the Florida Panther as well before we kind of took over and developed all over the state. And those filled a great niche and kept predators, I guess smaller predators, things like raccoons, possums that maybe some of us aren't a huge fan of,
they kept those populations in check.

And so when those species disappeared or their populations are now very, very small and coyotes have moved in, they’re filling that niche and playing a critical, critical role in keeping, again, some of the species that we might not be huge fans of, things like mice and rats and cats…There's feral cats that they will prey upon, as well as domestic cats. And, you know, we'll touch a little bit on that when we talk about coexisting with them. But either way, they're playing a critical role there.

SHANNON:
Yeah. So what else do they eat? I know they don't just predate other predators. So what else is the rest of their diet made up of?

LARA:
Yeah, it's actually really interesting because I feel like when most people think about a coyote, they’re like “They gotta be carnivores, like that's all they're eating.” (LAUGHTER) But there is actually a study where the Florida Fish and Wildlife they did, they use roadkill which unfortunately is a big reason why a lot of coyotes die. But in looking at their contents of their stomachs, it was only 31% of their diet is made up of these kind of smaller mammal species.

And then another, yeah, another big chunk is actually like vegetation—so things like fruit and various other vegetation. One of the other reasons that some farmers in Florida aren't huge fans of coyotes because they actually will eat things like watermelon. And it's like very strange to think about that. (LAUGHTER)

SHANNON:
Yeah, but everyone needs to get their veggies in.

LARA:
That's right. (LAUGHTER) Obviously, it's like so fascinating to me. It's 12% of their diet from this study was insects, which is like…

SHANNON:
Why bother? They're so small.

LARA:
I know. I mean, I guess they do talk about it being like, you know, the future protein source down the road. I guess there's some validity there. And then it was, there was about another 10% that was anthropogenically-related, you know, human-related food, whether it was food or people getting into garbage cans. Or not people (LAUGHTER) getting into garbage cans.

So and then, smaller percentages, were things like birds and various amphibians and reptiles and including fish as well. So it's a very interesting makeup of their diet.

SHANNON:
It is. But I feel like it does reflect a lot of our other predator species for people. Like you said, they just, they think of them as carnivores exclusively. And what's really happening with, you know, coyotes is that they're omnivorous. They're adaptable. They're going to be opportunistic eaters. So whatever they can get a hold of. And I think that's really fascinating.

LARA:
Yeah. And that's, you know, another piece that aided in that range change is that they can, they're opportunistic like you said. It's like whatever is available, they're just going to eat it. So they make do with what they got.

SHANNON:
And so that brings me to think about shelter, food and water. When we're talking about wildlife habitat ,animals need those three things to have a habitat. They need food, water and shelter. And my question is, does that affect the home range or the territory size of coyotes since we know they're in every county?

LARA:
Yeah, that's a really good question. And, you know, we do have lots of rural areas still in Florida and lots of very urban areas. So actually, the research has specifically looked at this home range size, like how far they have to travel to get those essential needs. And the research shows that for coyotes living in more rural or like natural areas, that their home range is larger than in an urban setting, which to me, like it was kind of counterintuitive at first.

But then when you think about it, it's like, oh, well, they can den under your front porch and drink out of your pool and eat out of your garbage can. They don't have to go far in an urban site. Whereas natural areas, in a dry season they may have to travel miles to find water. So it makes sense once you kind of like stop and think about it from all those different criteria that you mentioned before.

SHANNON:
I would say in my part of the state in central Florida, in Polk County, we fall largely into that more rural natural area-type landscape. We've got a lot of pasture land and natural area still, and I just don't get a lot of calls from clientele about coyotes. And when I do, it's only ever in our more urban areas like Lakeland or Winter Haven.

But that is not the case for you, is it?

LARA:
(LAUGHS) No. And in fact, when I first started my job, my boss said your number one goal is to do coyote outreach and education because people are so up in arms with like this relatively new species that everyone's very fearful of. So my calls have gone down over time. So I like to say, you know, I'm doing my job. (LAUGHTER)

But I would say, like, definitely if anyone is on “Nextdoor,” at least in Pinellas County, it is always blowing up with people sighting coyotes or, you know, claiming coyotes ate their cat. So it's definitely an issue. And I think regardless, like in rural areas, it could be an issue for those managing, those in the livestock industry, there's sorts of coyotes there. And then obviously in an urban area, like people are fearful for their pets and their own lives. And what we've found is when people try and take efforts to like get rid of these coyotes because they don't want them around is it's not effective and…

SHANNON:
It doesn’t work.

LARA:
It doesn’t work. And there's several factors that play into that, that I just want to touch on briefly. (COYOTE PUPS YIPPING) So they right now, if you're hearing coyotes, there's a reason for that, because right now they're having their pups. They have their pups in spring. The average litter size is six, which is a lot in the mammal world. I've seen 12 and 13 documented for like the maximum. But they wait.

SHANNON:
With one coyote mother?

LARA:
Yes. (LAUGHS)

SHANNON:
Oh, my gosh.

LARA:
Bless her soul. Yes. Yeah. And what they found is they have this what we call a “density dependent reproductive response,” which is a fancy way of saying when there's less coyotes in the area, they have more pups. And when the populations are large and they can sense, you know, maybe their resources are limited, they tend to have less pups. And so when people are going in and eradicating coyotes, they would quickly be filled in with the next population or the next family from the territory over. So they're able to reproduce at ten months old, average litter size of six. Both parents raise the young. It's like everything is in the coyotes’ favor for like reproduction and population sustainability.

SHANNON:
Yeah. No kidding.

LARA:
I think with that is a good, one of the things we always like to stress is like coyotes are here to stay. We need to learn to coexist. I know you guys hear that from Shannon and I a lot, you need to learn to coexist with these species. And coyotes are no exception to that.

SHANNON:
Yeah, but even though they're here to stay, they do so many good things also, right? So we touched on a little bit in the beginning that they're filling this niche of eating or predating on other species that could be problematic for people. And one that really comes to mind are the rats and the mice. And so even though they might be eating some native species, we have a lot of non-native rats that they are eating.

And it's a perfect prey size for them, especially for the young pups. And so can you imagine, Lara, how many rats would be, especially in those urban areas, because they need so little space? Like, I can’t, I just can't. And I'm so glad that we have a medium- sized predator in our ecosystem, again, to help take care of those rats.

I mean, we talk about things reproducing like rabbits or reproducing like rats, and coyotes take care of both populations.

LARA:
Yeah. Yeah, for sure. And I know for me, you know, you alluded to me being like a bird nerd as well. Yeah. And we do know whether it's a domestic cat or feral cat, if it's outside that they do tremendous harm to a lot of our native species, especially songbirds. And so, again, by having coyotes around to keep those populations in check, especially when it comes to the feral cat population, which at least in Pinellas County is crazy.

You know, that's also helping to protect songbirds, which is a huge economic booster for our area. So it's like this huge, I mean, has this massive ripple effect of the value and importance of coyotes in our area. Now, that's not to say coyotes are always good, right? We know this. So there have been certain cases where they have posed threats to certain rare and endangered species like snowy plovers, burrowing owls, even gopher tortoises, sea turtles, their eggs anyway on the nest or on the beach.

So there have been in some of those cases. Well, I mentioned before, typically eradication efforts are not effective. In very specific like targeted cases in areas, you can have an impact if it's a very targeted effort trying to protect a certain species. So it’s not, that’s why we’re not seeing it like a huge “Get rid of all the coyotes!” It’s not. Overall populations aren't being negatively impacted. But in certain areas, we have seen those effects.

SHANNON:
Absolutely. Especially if it's an isolated population for some reason, like a small peninsula or an island population, that's another time where you can have a lot of impact on the population level of coyotes.

LARA:
For sure. Yeah. And I would say, too, I know whenever I give presentations, people are very fearful of rabies as it relates to coyotes, which is a valid concern with really all wildlife. But in the case of coyotes, it's been extremely, extremely rare for coyotes to have rabies And what they do find is in the cases where there are coyote attacks, there's rabies is often playing a role in that.

But again, the number of attacks are significantly small across the United States. Across Florida it’s very, very, very rare. That being said, if you do have a coyote in your neighborhood that seems to be approaching you or getting too close or making anyone uncomfortable, there are things that we can do. So obviously, one option is you could hire a wildlife trapper, a certified wildlife trapper, to come and remove that one specific nuisance coyote. That is effective in that sense.

But what we like to encourage people to do is it's called “coyote hazing.” I'm not a fan of the term, but it is what it is. That's if you do any searching online, that's what you're going to find. It’s basically just re-instilling the fear in the coyote, whether it’s spraying a hose towards the coyote if it gets close or making a loud noise to scare it off.

So it's just you're not inflicting harm on the coyote. Like we would maybe think of hazing with people, but it's just really to keep that fear in them so that hopefully we don't have attacks or any negative interactions with coyotes.

SHANNON:
Yeah. And with hazing coyotes or other wildlife that we might maybe recommend hazing, like a black bear that is getting too close to your home or something, these are exclusively non-lethal. I just wanted to emphasize that this is not hurting the animal. It is just like Lara said, trying to build that fear of humans in a way that protects them.

So doing non-lethal things to encourage them to be afraid of you and other neighborhood areas, it's generally considered a good thing.

LARA:
Yeah. And of course, there's the human aspect of interacting with coyotes. But we also know that people lose pets to coyotes, which can be, you know, most people think of their pets as part of their family, and nobody wants to lose a family member. So we always stress different ways that you can protect your pets. So I always say with domestic cats, right?

It's like the only time I can ever say I have a 100% guarantee if you do not let your cat outside, it will not get eaten by a coyote. And I know different counties and cities have different ordinances as it relates to cats being outside. So you'd have to do your homework. And in some cases, it's technically illegal to even have them outside.

But definitely if you do want to give them outside air, you know, there's what they call “catios” that you can let your cat outside in a screened-in porch area that would keep them safe and protected, but give them exposure to the outside world.

SHANNON:
Sounds pretty luxurious.

LARA:
I know, right? (LAUGHTER) Some of them are.

SHANNON:
Like a little cat spa outside. How exciting.

LARA:
And then when it comes to dogs, for smaller dogs, they're going to be more associated with prey for the coyotes. So you definitely want to be on alert if you know there's coyotes in the area and you have a small dog. We know dogs need to go outside, do their business. If you have a leash, this really goes for big or small dogs: We recommend no longer than six-foot leash.

Keep them close. The ones that extend out and like trip people and get tangled around mailboxes (LAUGHTER) are not recommended because if a smaller dog does see a coyote and it's on one of those extendable leashes, its instinct is going to be to run. The coyote’s instinct is going to be to chase, and we don't want that.

So that's our recommendation. And just really keep your eye close. If you know you have coyotes, again, in the neighborhood and you're letting your dogs outside to do their business just keep a close eye on them. Have those coyote hazing tools around if needed, Yeah. So there's some little, you know, pretty easy things that we can do to keep our pets safe.

SHANNON:
Speaking of letting your dog out and keeping them safe when you're doing that, we tend to let our dogs out before work and after we get home. And for most of the year, that also usually coincides with sunrise and sunset. Coyotes are also most active at dawn and dusk. They're known as “crepuscular.” I always have trouble saying that!

(LAUGHTER)

LARA:
Crepuscular! It’s like my favorite word.

SHANNON:
There it is. It just means the species is most active in the evening and in the morning. Twice a day. And so if you're in an area where you know there are regular coyote sightings because you have a robust population, keep that leash close at hand and don't let them go off sniffing and smelling every brush in your yard at sunrise.

It's just a good practice better to be cautious. Now, all that said, (LAUGHS) coyotes, just because they're in the area, much like in our alligator episode, just because you have coyotes does not mean they're necessarily a problem. You could just be existing and eating pests and doing great. Coyotes are really intelligent. They're very smart critters. And they teach each other their hunting techniques and what prey is good in an area.

So if you have a pack of coyotes in your community that's not causing a problem, you don't want to disrupt them. This is not a group of coyotes you would want to call the trapper for because the next group that comes in, because remember Lara said there will be another group…

That next group that comes in might be more accustomed to hunting pets or other things that you care about or eating your watermelons. Whatever the food item of choice is allowing that new pack to come in could cause more problems than the one you're currently dealing with. And this is how a lot of our ranchers out in my neck of the woods deal with coyotes if they have them— well they do have them because they're everywhere. They just let them do their thing.

But as soon as they start seeing predation issues with their livestock, then they look into how do we get rid of these nuisance coyotes and hope that the next pack that comes in doesn't go after our livestock. So that's just a couple little thoughts from your natural resources agents on letting the predators be predators, but hopefully they're eating things that you're not super attached to.

LARA:
Yeah. And I guess that's kind of, it is a good way to wrap up, which is coyotes are only going to be attracted to the things that Shannon mentioned, the food, water, shelter, especially in an urban setting. So if you do have your garbage can or pet food or anything that you tend to leave out, anything that's going to attract coyotes, we just want to take that attractant away to eliminate potential negative conflicts with coyotes.

And hopefully you guys can learn to love them, at least like I do. I don't know exactly where Shannon stands on it, but…

SHANNON:
I'm so excited whenever I see a coyote that's not roadkill. I'm going to be completely honest, they usually are. (LAUGHS) But when I get to see one in a field or next to a creek or, you know, by the Peace River, it makes me really excited to have that predator back. And I know not everyone is going to feel that way, like you said, but personally, I get excited about it.

I think they're pretty cool.

LARA:
Yeah, yeah, for sure. And just keep your ears out. It’s, again, they're having their pups now. There's going to be lots of yipping and barking.

(COYOTE PUPS YIPPING AND BARKING)

And do keep in mind, they're also pretty territorial, especially this time of year too. So observe and enjoy from a distance.

SHANNON:
Yes. Be safe.

(COYOTES YIPPING AND BARKING)

Return to main podcast website