coyote behavior

[trappnman]

a while back was out looking for new farms, and one thing became starkly clear to me-

there really isn't much habitat once we get deep snow. Now of course I knew this before, but looking at farms this time of year, imagining their potential in fall, really made it jump out at me.

So- my thoughts go like this-

in extreme conditions, coyotes HAVE to bunch up. Because they got to eat, and they got to have at least minimal shelter- and those places stand out like sore thumbs,

so flash back to fall and easy living, and I know coyotes are scattered throughout their range. Plenty of food and everyone has their own table so to speak. Boundaries and interactions are based on that scenario.

so how do they interact during extreme conditions where for survival, they must, or at least it seems to me they must, have closer interactions, and, again due to conditions, have less energy for territorial disputes.

in other words, do they just "get along" better?

Studies have shown interactions change dramatically based on overabundance of food, and extreme lack of food- so its a reasonable assumption, I think...

so if that's the case, and I assume it is- what happens when conditions change, when the coyotes scatter?

do they go back to whence they came?

in other words- are old territories just regained, or is it a free for all with dominant pairs taking what they want, all the way down the line?

Could this period, just at/during breeding season- be the true dispersal?

my point in asking this, is that if the above is correct (in essence what I'm asking, is territory now a new slate, with expansion coming out somewhat concentrically from the winter staging points?

could one look at it in reverse re: where they will be in fall, by knowing the winter areas? using them as dead center, and then expanding out following habitat lines, etc?

make any sense to anyone?

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its going to be summer before we know it, and fall quicker than I'd like- am already thinking about next year.

one thing I HAVE to keep in mind, something that I think might be the silver bullet FOR me- is to stop setting for the same coyotes in multiple locations. I started out last year being a little lax in this, but the middle to end of the season we made a good effort not to do so, and it paid off.

It IS hard to not want to set up farms where in fact, I'm on different locations, but am trying for the same pool of coyotes.

I like to cluster set farms, and did OK, but more and more with the run and go style I'm seeing the true importance of setting up the overlap, high usage spots, vs the one should come by spots.

Found a "hidden valley" so to speak that has structure and farms there I never new existed, so found my last expansion direction, and am really starting to get keyed for next year- prices be damned I'm a coyote trapper, and I trap coyotes.

so that's my summer goal- expand the line where it needs it, consolidate the others a bit, and this year, should be my bell ringer year.

I'm pumped to say the least.

as far as equipment and methods- not much to change, happy with my lures and baits, happy with my traps but would like to get them or at least a majority laminated and 4 coiled--

do have to get a new hammer- sadly, and a dismal day, opening day I water trapped I went down, and lost my hammer in about 5 feet of water- looked for it every trip through, but alas, it is no more.

thoughts form others?

[RdFx]

Magnet Steve, magnet....on rope

[bblwi]

A friend and I spent about 10 hours on 3 different occasions in Jan and Feb walking several miles of the federal portion of the Horicon Marsh.
We found many coyote tracks crossing the vast areas of the marsh. These areas have mixed crop, forest and grass fringes around the marsh. We hiked across the marsh east-west etc. and we found lots of yote tracks and they seemed to find or know every rat house that had lives rats. (That was few this year with drought and draw down). Most rat houses with rats were far out in the deeper water fringe areas. Coyote scat showed, rats, rabbits, deer, mice. Fox tracks closer to wooded dikes, and near the fringe areas but in the more open areas otters and yotes was about it. I am guessing that the corn field areas with good cover are coyote hot spots in the fall with geese present for 2-3 months and then the yotes run the frozen marsh all winter.

Bryce

[braveheart]

Picked up 5 new farms from beaver trapping jobs.I have got rid of all my not so productive farms.More coyote tracks than coon tracks.And way to many cat tracks are a pain to release.Picking up 5 doz. victor step-ins 4 coiled and no.4's.Fall will be here before long and the shed is full of bait and lure to hit the sun.

[trappnman]

lee- I tried that, I tried a rake, I tried everything I could think of sans diving in- and I was considering that this summer, but we have already had a couple of over the banks floods this spring

[jsevering]

think somewhat it does... remember bob and some of the discuusions prior to december and on the december lull and then the true dispearsal.... imagine the area and population densities play a major role also...

know here... "its not farm country"... mostly wooded our dispersal routes are the better bet when the snow is on... its also in many cases the areas the food is at in most cases....

basically the reparian strips or as slim talked about awhile back the one third lines... being on the southerly or northerly side of the mountains all seem to come into play some also...

dont know if the better core areas are held by the same dogs year after year.... hope not cause, it wouldnt say too awful much for me...

but do notice that after breeding season the better areas i belive are being held usally have a pair and a single dog working together... by the tracks in the snow...

generally find them working together hunting "down" of certain ridges for deer... random flush then take different angles off the ridge line and nail them usally at or on the frozen stream "ice"or darn near it...

personally i think after breeding season... holding an area may be second nature for an alpha pair and helps the dispersal along some... here at least... jim

[trappnman]

What I wonder Jim- is are the territories reclaimed, or at this dispersal, is it first come, best defended?

Lets look at this scenario- say you take the breeding pairs out of connecting areas A, B and C-but in D, you failed.

and lets say the wintering area, is X- and from that lay A, B, C and D in that order-

would the surviving pair in D, go to that to reclaim? or would they just stop at A (assuming equal in food, habitat, etc)?

I understand that good territories will be filled- but the connection to trapping is how they are filled.

for example- say you took out a good proportion of coyotes that use wintering area X-
if before winter, you could look at the area and see it filled with different ranges and/or territory depending on the season.

do they then go back to such territory/range?

[jsevering]

couldn't say for sure steve... i try to understand it some... don't really... but try.....
fairly easy to understand pup.. to beta... beta to a capable alpha to an actual mating alpha and pair...

its everything in between that screws me up.....
like types of transients... social class/ status and why

imagine trapping plays a roll there across the board also...


even the associate behavior... from no contact before... to some... to being a beta waiting for the possible or eventual alpha status... family member or other... imagine trapping knocks the snot out of that some also...

but imagine if the area is held by a pair or by a beta from the family group that moved up and has a good capable food base available... they might try to hold the same area... but then again when you read some of those high density studies... to me its just another x factor... that adds to my already confused and burnt out mind... but fun to ponder on... jim

[MRussell]

Steve i honestly think they just "get along" with one another when the situation dictates. Of course when we start picking off the family members here and there it lightens the load for the whole of them.

[trappnman]

what I'm curious about, is how they disperse after the winter "gatherings" for lack of a better term.

for example, lets say the dominant pair for that general area, last year claimed a territory say 10 miles away. Assuming there is comparable area closer, do the pairs tend to take the first available area, or do they return to the territory they held the year before?

knowing that, one could to a degree, map out dispersal patterns.

[trappincoyotes39]

Tman you can take coyote dens from the same area year after year and many unless something changes there will be within a few 100 yards or less of the previous years. So your killing out those pairs and each spring a new pair is right there to set up shop it has everything they need.

The territory size will change for various reasons, age class of coyotes, coyote densities, food supply etc.

[trappnman]

yes, I undertand that a good denning area, will always (or most always) have a pair on it in whelping time-

what is your opinion TC on whether that territory is held by the same pair (assuming they are around yet) year after year?

[trappincoyotes39]

Pretty good odds on that. All depends on the aggression level of those coyotes and age class, and that of the ones trying to overtake that territory. Not all coyote pairs have the same aggression for various reasons.