“River Pack Update: Some things change, some stay the same” by Charles Wood

31 Mar 2011 Leave a Comment

by yipps in avoiding humans, coyote behavior, coyote reactions to dogs, coyote's coat, group activity, identifying individual coyotes, individuality, reactions to a human

My last post was February 22, 2011 when I photographed the mom coyote that lives in a small field that borders one of Los Angeles County’s concrete ‘rivers’.  That post was about 9 weeks after having seen Mom, Dad and their two undispersed female children who by today would be about a year old.  In the past I called one of the children Bold and the other Shy.  I have included their earlier photographs in today’s post.

A couple weeks ago I began to enter their small field a few times to walk along its roads with my leashed dog Holtz.  Coyote tracks and droppings were on the roads, yet my coyotes, if even present during my visits, would not come out.  I remember winter 2009-10 was a time I rarely saw my coyotes.  Winter 2010-11 has been the same.  I wondered if Dad was still paired with Mom and if not, who would be with whom and would there be more pups this year.  I wondered if the two female youngsters had dispersed or worse.  Perhaps they had all moved to other areas.

Today as I walked south on their road, at their nest area, I spotted the first youngster peering from the brush.  She came out to watch us and then left to hide.  In her photograph, note she has distinct blemishes below her left eye.  Regardless, I’m not sure if this first youngster is Bold or Shy.  I seriously doubt it was neither.

I continued my walk and later left the field via the same road.  Dad peered out from the nest area.  I photographed him and he went back into the brush.  I walked on towards the exit and Dad and a youngster came out to the road and watched our progress and assessed whatever odors we had left on the road.  I say ‘a’ youngster because I am not sure which it was.  Eventually Dad and the first youngster pictured began to follow Holtz and I as we continued to leave.  They did so after returning to the brush and coming out to the road several times.  For the fact that they were not in my continuous view, I’m not sure Dad’s companion in approach is the same youngster shown marking on the road.  I am sure Dad’s companion in approach is the first youngster because the final picture of her in this series shows the same blemish pattern below the left eye.  If she is Bold, she is still so.  If she is Shy, she is less so and learned more from Dad today about how to deal with intruder dogs.  What has changed, and what is the same?

Certainly Dad is the same in his distaste for Holtz.  When following us, Dad decided to quickly close the distance between us.  Before so doing, he scraped dirt.  He and the youngster split up, where Dad came east of the rocks and the youngster came towards us to the west of the rocks.  They met up at the rocks, the youngster holding back as Dad charged Holtz.  The Dad And Youngster photograph was taken after Dad’s charge.  He had come to about 20 feet and stopped, backed off some and stood as shown.  He seemed calmer so I took his picture.  I didn’t take pictures during Dad’s charge because I was charging towards Dad to get in front of Holtz.  Here we see one function of long hair on a coyote’s nape and shoulders:  he sure looks bigger!

My exit strategy after such a confrontation is to walk on, stop, turn around and stare, walk on, turn to stare.  Dad’s exit strategy is to pace, yawn, poke his tongue out, find a nearby site to lie down, attend to his grooming needs and stay put as we leave.  The youngster wanders around, visits Dad, wanders some more, going back and forth yet not forward.

I’m happy to know Dad is still holding his field and that at least one of last year’s pups is alive and undispersed.  I suspect that Mom is present and that there may indeed be more pups this year.  I’m interested to know if last year’s pup(s) will remain and have a role in caring for newborns.  The weeds are growing back quickly in the areas cleared in fall and winter.  The coyotes make use of the additional cover as a puppy kindergarten.  Last year I began seeing the pups in late June, observing them from outside of the field.  The information gained today leaves me content to now keep out of the field.

Posting written by Charles Wood. Visit Charles Wood’s website for these and more coyote photos:Charles Wood. His work is copyrighted and may only be used with his explicit permission.

Shafts of Fur

30 Mar 2011 Leave a Comment

by yipps in coyote's coat


The rain isn’t necessarily good for taking photos, but in some instances it actually serves to make things clearer. Because the coyote was very wet, the fur clumped together, so the camera was better able to focus on these clumped shafts of fur. From the photo you can actually see what these shafts look like from end to end.

This fur here is part of the crescent shaped pattern located just below the shoulders crossing the coyote’s back. Each hair has three stripes: dark at the skin line — this is the longest section, then white, and then dark at the tip. The fur in this location across the upper back is the longest found on a coyote except for the tail. It gets to be over two inches in length.

Raincoat

03 Jan 2011 Leave a Comment

by yipps in coyote physical appearance, coyote's coat Tags:

By raincoat, in this instance, I mean a coat that has been impacted by the heavy rains. This coat isn’t wet, but the top appears to be much darker in color than usual, and it is matted down in a way that makes it look like one of those doggie raincoats that many owners buy for their pets!

Lush Winter Coat Revealed In The Wind

15 Oct 2010 Leave a Comment

by yipps in coyote physical appearance, coyote's coat

Here are photos of coyotes in their full winter coats. The wind blowing through the coat of one of the coyotes reveals for us not only how long and thick the winter coat is, but also how the coloring works throughout the length of the fur shaft.

Tail Spots

14 Oct 2010 Leave a Comment

by yipps in coyote physical appearance, coyote's coat

Very often, the spot which is about one-third of the way down a coyote’s tail, can be used to distinguish one coyote from another, at least from the back! Here are three different coyote tail markings. Notice especially the middle fellow: his marking is almost lightning shaped — the same as Harry Potter’s scar! During the summer, because the fur is shed, the marking are less distinguishing than when the coyotes have their full winter coats.

“More Waiting: A Southern California Update” by Charles Wood

14 Sep 2010 Leave a Comment

by yipps in communication, coyote behavior, coyote living areas, coyote's coat

It has been over a year since I entered my coyotes’ field to take pictures of birds.  At that time I believe there were three or four coyotes regularly in that field.  Two I have come to know as Mom and Dad.  The other one or two I haven’t seen this year and presume them to have been their offspring.  Last summer I didn’t come across the coyotes very often.  A couple times I noticed one coyote sneaking up on my foraging dog.  I shouted the coyote off and leashed my dog.  Another time my dog and I ambled out of the brush onto a dirt road.  My dog alerted and I looked up and saw three or four coyotes resting quietly by a large puddle on the dirt road.  They looked as we would have looked at strangers who had abruptly stumbled upon us while ensconced in a relaxing, private conversation.  Each coyote’s head was turned and frozen for a moment, looking at us with surprised concern.  Before they all darted off into the brush, one slowly stood up first and then paused as if to say “Well then, we’ll be leaving now.”  Dad’s muzzle wasn’t scarred last year when at the end of summer when he finally chased me and my dog out of his field.  In late spring 2010 I returned with the birds.

2010’s most memorable moment was viewing puppies in early June.  Soon thereafter I saw seven puppies together though now I seem to be seeing only two youngsters with Mom and Dad.  They meet around dusk at the same place in their field and if I’m lucky I see them before dark.  That particular place is, as I now think back over the last year, the place where I was most likely to come across coyotes.  It is not far from, and on the way to the place I go in and out of their field.  I would pass that area in leaving about the time that light became too dim for photography, their time.

Mom now has her winter coat, the coat that will keep her warm until January or so when she again comes into season.  Monday Mom was with a youngster, pictured together and separately.  They stayed within easy reach of each other.  They saw me before I saw them, that is, at least Mom did.  Mom was sitting and watching when the youngster’s movements caught my eye.  Mom wasn’t moving so I didn’t see her, though the camera did.  At times I don’t see Mom even when she is moving.  Twice this month she has surprised me, once at the bridge and once along the river.  Each time she seemed to be instantly there.  She marked, scratched dirt, mock charged and withdrew.  There was a time when only Dad so messaged me.  Since they now both do, I leave their area before it gets too dark.  Earlier this summer, sun still out, three times Dad sneaked up behind me and got way too close before I saw him.  Neither Mom nor Dad is getting used to or comfortable around me.

I did return to an area to the immediate north-west of their field.  There, on September 3, I was surprised when a young coyote poked out from the brush into the clearing in which I was standing.  It turned and fled, my dog having barked and charged.  A couple days later, at the spot I had been standing, lay coyote scat, small coyote scat that appeared to be a couple days old.  Good job!

Posting written by Charles Wood. Visit Charles Wood’s website for these and more coyote photos: Charles Wood. His work is copyrighted and may only be used with his explicit permission.

Coyote Coats Are Beginning To Fill Out Again

18 Aug 2010 Leave a Comment

by yipps in coyote physical appearance, coyote's coat

I have noticed that coyote coats are beginning to fill out and lengthen already by August: note the tail, especially.  During the coyote’s shedding period, fur loss moved up the shoulders from the legs. The last place to be shed was the neck area: in June some of the coyotes even appeared to have lions’ manes before this last bit of thick winter fur was shed!  The shedding was completed in June, leaving a coat darker in color as compared to what had been shed.

In June and July coyotes appeared at their scrawniest due to the minimal amount of fur: bones and ribs could be easily seen. Because of the sparse and short fur, the very distinctive markings of each coyote almost disappeared during the end of the shedding period. Bushy tails became thin and wispy. But now I’m seeing the same original, distinctive markings re-appear that I had noted from wintertime. These includes distinctive colors as well as distinctive patterns, especially on a coyote’s back. The coats seem to be at their fullest and most colorful in the fall, and last until January when the fur will start, again, to be shed slowly, leaving grayer/silver and blacker tones which cause a lot of the coyotes to look alike. The change is amazing and particularly noticeable in very young coyotes! What remains the same, of course, throughout the year, is a coyote’s facial features.

Looking Very Scrawny, and Might There Be A Vestigial Mane?

09 Jul 2010 Leave a Comment

by yipps in coyote physical appearance, coyote's coat

Heavy coyote winter coats have been shed, and what remains are much sparser and shorter summer coats. With this reduced coat, you can actually see how scrawny a coyote really is: ribs, spine and hip bones all poke out very visibly. This is normal. You’ll notice that coyotes are not lacking in energy that might result from malnutrition. The “skin and bones” aspect is just the way they are. My son changed the diet of his dog to a macrobiotic raw meat one, and for a while the dog looked like a starvation victim, no matter how much he ate. Raw meat just doesn’t put a lot of fat on animals. Coyotes need to be thin to retain their quick and sprightly movements.

Am I seeing a very small and sparse vestigial mane on some of the coyotes?  I only see it sometimes, but I’ve noticed it several times now. It consists of longer hairs on a sparse thin ridge right down the center of the neck, beginning at the base of the skull and running to the top of the back.

I’ve seen coyote coats in May – June – July which appear as though they included a full lion-type mane around the entire neck. However, this is only how it appears. This appearance is due to the way the winter coat is shed — it seems that the thick winter fur of the neck area is shed last and therefore looks like a heavy mane sometimes during these months.

Change of Appearance Due to Shedding

22 Apr 2010 Leave a Comment

by yipps in coyote's coat Tags:

Coyote winter coats, thick and fluffy gray with strong black markings, are now being shed as the weather changes. Note the heavy winter coat above left, and the coyote to the right who is in the process of shedding this coat. The coyote’s new coat is shorter and darker, and the markings are not as intense. Also, as more winter fur is shed, the same coyote will appear much thinner. The change is so different that it makes it very possible to mistake it for being a different coyote, but in fact it is one and the same. I’ll try to add a third photo when the shedding is complete in mid-June.

The first two photos show the heavier winter coat. The third shows that coat thinning out, leaving a darker, more uniform colored coat. The last section of the coat to shed will be the neck area: a coyote in June often looks like it has a mane!

A Coyote’s Appearance Changes Over Time

14 Feb 2010 Leave a Comment

by yipps in coyote physical appearance, coyote's coat Tags: ,

I’ve become aware that over time, a coyote’s appearance can change considerably. One of the coyotes which I have been following over time would have been absolutely unrecognizable to me from when I first encountered her, were it not for the fact that I’ve kept up with her — her behavior remains the same. I thought it might be interesting to post some photos to show the change.

This coyote went through a change of color from browner to more silver, her markings became more prominent, facial look filled out so that the ears and eyes don’t appear as prominent as before, she grew a winter coat in the fall which she will shed in the springtime — this makes her appear larger, she gained weight in the fall — could this be due to aging or is it cyclical?

Note that in photo #1, taken in June, she is very thin, and she actually had a “mane” on her neck from her shoulders up to her head. Over the next few months this was shed — it may be that she sheds this part of her coat last. The first three photos were taken in the summer. She had been cooped up in her den with newborn pups prior to these summer months — we know this because she was obviously lactating when she emerged, and her body fat had obviously been depleted. The last three photos were taken the following fall and winter — she gained weight and she had a winter coat. I think all the changes I have noted here are due to aging, the seasonal changes and to being a mother.

Lots of RAIN

21 Jan 2010 Leave a Comment

by yipps in coyote behavior, coyote physical appearance, coyote's coat Tags: ,

I walked around a park in the very early morning rain — the rain was not extremely heavy today, but it was continuous. It might have been a miserable walk without my rain gear: wetness brings sticky clothing, hair stuck to your face, coldness, especially to your hands, difficulty seeing if the rain is coming at your face.

But if you have the proper equipment, such a walk is truly a magical experience. First of all, it is very peaceful because no one else is around: very few walkers and dogs can be seen — none when I went. But also, one becomes very aware of each rain drop and the sound of them all, of the change in the paths caused by the rain, of cascading water run-offs, of large puddles that have accumulated, of rain drops in these puddles forming concentric circles of tiny little waves expanding outwards. It is all very beautiful.

Here, where it rains so seldom, the rains bring immediate changes. The biggest change so far has been color: brown (what we Californian’s call “gold”) has given way to emerald green, which will now last through the springtime.

What about coyotes in the rain? I have noticed a coyote curl up on a hill right before a rain began — I’m wondering if it knew that rain was imminent?  If it had, would it not have moved on? As it began to drizzle, the coyote stayed out at first, maybe for about 20 minutes as the mist became stronger. And then, at a certain point, it must have stopped being fun for the coyote — rain in one’s face can be annoying. The coyote got up and went away.

Within the last week we’ve had a lot of heavy rain in the Bay Area. I did notice one coyote on a hilltop in the mid-heavy rain — no one else was in the park. This sighting was very brief before the coyote disappeared. Otherwise, my only sign of coyotes during this storm has been several “twisted ropes” of scat on the regular paths. So they are out and about, probably during the lulls in the downpours, and during darker hours, since I found these in the early morning.

Coyotes, like the rest of us, would prefer not getting wet for the most part. In this respect, they are also similar to dogs: my dog didn’t mind getting damp, but a walk in pouring rain was not his idea of fun — he was always happy to get back home and be dried off. He did not like rain in his face, nor did he like being soaked. Dog coats accumulate a lot of water — it always took three bath towels to dry my dog.

A coyote’s coat would repel more water than a dog’s simply because it is oilier and has never been washed, but it would still get pretty wet. At this time of year coyotes have a much fuller and thicker coat — they look like quite full-bodied animals, whereas in the springtime, when these heavy coats are shed, coyotes can look exceedingly scrawny. A coyote has an outer weather-protective coat, and then the thick, insulating undercoat which is grown in the fall and shed in springtime.

One other connection worth noting regarding dogs. The coyotes appear interested in the dogs that walk in the park, especially dogs which have taunted them in some way, such as barking at them or chasing them, even dogs that tug on a leash in the coyote’s direction.  I have noticed that these dogs in particular draw the coyotes’ interest: the coyotes keep an eye on them more intently than on the other dogs. The coyotes have come in the direction of a couple of these dogs, but never actually close enough to interact. Maybe the coyotes have a need to “settle the score”, or possibly test these dogs for how far they really might go? I’m keeping track of this. These particular dogs have not been walking in this heavy rain. But I’m wondering if fewer dogs, and especially fewer of the “difficult” dogs, might also be why the coyotes themselves are not out recently — or is it only because of the rain? It is food for thought.