FUN FACTS
- The scientific name for coyote is Canis latrans, which translates to “barking dog” in Latin.
- The name Coyote came from Mexican Spanish and was derived from the Nahuatl word coyotl.
- There are 19 subspecies of coyotes.
Conservation Status
Least Concern
The coyote stands about 60 cm (24 inches) at the shoulder, weighs about 9–23 kg (20–50 pounds), and is about 1–1.3 metres (3.3–4.3 feet) long, including its 30–40-cm tail. The fur is long and coarse and is generally grizzled buff above and whitish below, reddish on the legs, and bushy on the black-tipped tail. There is, however, considerable local variation in size and colour; the largest coyotes live in the northeastern United States and eastern Canada.
Noted for its nightly serenades of yaps and howls, the coyote is primarily nocturnal, running with tail pointed downward and sometimes attaining a speed of 64 km (40 miles) per hour. Coyotes are extremely efficient hunters, and their senses are keen. They are visual predators in open areas, but they mostly use smell and hearing to locate prey in thick vegetation or forest. In the northern parts of its range, the coyote relies primarily on the snowshoe hare and white-tailed deer as prey. A single coyote is able to capture an adult deer, especially in deep snow. Coyotes take down deer by repeatedly biting at the back legs and hindquarters, the kill finally being made with a choking bite to the throat. In fall and early winter, coyotes often hunt in pairs or packs, and the success of a pack increases with its size. Larger packs typically hunt larger animals, although they will capture and eat whatever prey they encounter. The coyote also consumes carrion. Wherever or whenever prey is unavailable or hard to obtain, coyotes eat large quantities of wild berries and fruits. In doing so, they may become much leaner. In the northeast, coyotes are fatter during winter, when deer are easier to capture, than in late summer.
The coyote competes with several other carnivores, especially in the northeast, where coyotes were previously absent. Lynx and bobcats compete for the same foods (hares and rabbits), and the success of each of these predators depends on the setting. Lynx are better at catching hares in powdery snow, whereas coyotes hunt in areas with less snow accumulation where travel is easier. The coyote also competes with the red fox, which it will kill upon encountering. For this reason, areas with high coyote densities often harbour few red foxes. Occasionally, larger animals such as wolves or cougars (pumas) prey on coyotes.
Coyotes mate between January and March, and females usually bear four to seven pups after a gestation of 58–65 days. Births occur in an underground burrow, usually a hole dug by badgers or by the parent coyotes. Most dens are on hillsides with good drainage (to avoid flooding during rainstorms) and where visibility allows parents to watch the surroundings for danger. Young are born blind and helpless, but, after two to three weeks, pups start emerging from the den to play. Weaning occurs at five to seven weeks, and both parents feed and care for the pups until they are fully grown and independent, usually at six to nine months of age. Young typically disperse in the fall, but some older siblings will help raise younger offspring, and family groups may remain together and form packs during winter.
The International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources has classified the coyote as a species of least concern since 1996. Coyote populations at the start of the 21st century were greater than ever before in North America, a strong testament to this canine’s ability to adapt and thrive in human-modified landscapes. Despite constant hunting, poisoning, and other means of control in some localities, the coyote persists, and its future seems secure. Indeed, management of coyotes by biologists is concerned more with their overabundance than their rarity. The coyote hybridizes readily with the domestic dog (Canis lupus familiaris); the offspring are called coydogs. Genetic evidence suggests that coyotes in eastern North America have interbred with both dogs and wolves to produce populations of hybrid animals that are roughly 4.5 kg (10 pounds) heavier than average coyotes; these hybrid forms are known colloquially as eastern coyotes or coywolves.
Physical Description
Tigers have reddish-orange coats with prominent black stripes, white bellies and
white spots on their ears. Like a human fingerprint, no two tigers have the exact
same markings. Because of this, researchers can use stripe patterns to identify
different individuals when studying tigers in the wild. Tigers are powerful hunters
with sharp teeth, strong jaws and agile bodies. They are the largest terrestrial
mammal whose diet consists entirely of meat. The tiger’s closest relative is the lion.
In fact, without fur, it is difficult to distinguish a tiger from a lion.
Size
Tigers are the largest cat species in the world, and the Amur tiger is the largest
subspecies with males weighing up to 660 pounds (300 kilograms) and measuring 10
feet (3 meters). Sumatran tigers are the smallest subspecies, maxing out at 310
pounds (140 kilograms) and 8 feet (2.4 meters). Female tigers of all subspecies tend
to be smaller than their male counterparts.
Native Habitat
Historically, tigers existed throughout much of Eastern and Southern Asia, as well as
in parts of Central and Western Asia and the Middle East, surrounding the Caspian
Sea. Their range has diminished significantly as human populations have expanded.
Itis believed they currently occupy just 7 percent of their historic range.
Presently, tigers are found in a variety of habitats across South and Southeast Asia,
China and Eastern Russia. They thrive in temperate, tropical or evergreen forests,
mangrove swamps and grasslands. Amur tigers are primarily found in Far-East
Russia, although there are small populations across the border into China and
potentially North Korea. Sumatran tigers are found only on the Indonesian island of
Sumatra. A tiger’s range within these regions is determined by the availability of
prey.
Communication
Despite their solitary nature, communication is a very important part of tigers’
behavioral ecology. They communicate through vocalizations, such as roaring,
grunting and chuffing, and through signals, such as scent marking and scratches on
trees. Tigers are fiercely territorial animals, so these signals are particularly
important to communicating where one tiger’s home range ends and another’s
begins.
Food/Eating Habits
Tigers are solitary ambush predators that rely on stealth and strength to take down
prey. These apex predators primarily hunt large ungulates, such as wild boar and
deer, but are also known to consume monkeys, buffalo, sloth bears, leopards and
even crocodiles. When tigers are found in close proximity to humans, they may also
feed on domestic animals, such as cattle or goats. Tigers are adept swimmers and
have even been recorded hunting in the wild.
These powerful cats hunt primarily at night, using sight and sound to identify prey.
Their striped coats help them blend into their surroundings, where they lie in wait for
prey to pass by. At the opportune moment, tigers pounce on their prey, take it to the
ground and finish the kill by breaking or biting the neck. Tigers hunt about once a
week and consume as much as 75 pounds (34 kilograms) of food in one night.
At the Zoo, tigers eat ground beef, and their diet is supplemented with enrichment
items each week. They receive knucklebones or cow femurs twice a week and rabbits
once a week to exercise their jaws and keep their teeth healthy.
Social Structure
Tigers are solitary creatures, except when mating or raising young. Cubs stay with
their mothers until they learn to hunt successfully, usually at about 18 to 24 months
old. They reach full independence after two to three years, at which point they
disperse to find their own territory. Female tigers often remain near their mother’s’
territory, while males disperse farther from home.
Reproduction and Development
Female tigers reach sexual maturity between age 3 and 4. Males are sexually mature
at about 4 or 5 years old. Mating can occur at any time of year but most often takes
place during cooler months between November and April. Tigers are induced
ovulators, which means females will not release eggs until mating occurs. Gestation
lasts approximately 100 days, and females give birth to between one and seven
offspring at a time, averaging between two and four cubs. Once cubs become
independent, at about age 2, females are ready to give birth again. However, if a
female’s offspring do not survive, due to causes such as infanticide or starvation, she
is able to conceive another litter right away.
Lifespan
The life span of tigers in the wild is usually between 10 and 15 years. In human care,
or on rare occasions in the wild, a tiger can live up to 20 years. However,
approximately half of all wild tiger cubs do not survive past the first two years of life.
Only 40 percent of those that reach independence actually live to establish a territory
and produce young. The risk of mortality remains high for adult tigers due to their
territorial nature, which often results in direct competition with conspecifics, or
members of the same species.
WHERE TO FIND THE COYOTE
