Coyotes vs. Nutria, by Jen Sanford
11 Feb 2012 4 Comments
in coyote behavior, hunting Tags: coyote, coyote behavior, coyotes, hunting
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Nope, no birds involved, sorry. At Ridgefield yesterday I watched a pair of coyotes try to take down a nutria and fail miserably. I thought I was about to vomit my lunch while watching a nutria get torn in half, but nope. He made a run for it down into the slough. But it was still cool to watch.
From Janet: I want to point out that coyotes often hunt in pairs like this, especially when there is larger prey than a gopher involved. Also, coyotes, like the rest of us, don’t always have the same skill sets, most of which have to be learned through practice and through watching other coyotes. All the bites by the coyotes were to the nutria’s back: I wonder if they were trying to break its back to incapacitate it? Or, might they have been trying to pick it up to carry it off, but unable to do so? It looks like the nutria endured several puncture wounds — I hope its injuries were not too severe. Nutrias were “eradicated” from California, but they still inhabit Oregon. Thanks, Jen, for sharing your posting and superb photos!
This posting and photographs were republished, with permission, from Jen’s site i used to hate birds.
Coyote Interrupted
14 Jan 2012 4 Comments
in coyote behavior, coyote reactions to dogs, dog reactions to coyotes, oneupmanship, video Tags: coyote, coyote behavior, coyotes, dogs and coyotes, urban coyotes
Sirens set this coyote off, with long drawn-out howls and barking, and pauses in-between. I’ve only included part of the recording here. During one of the last pauses you will hear, unusually, a dog’s response, which surprises the coyote who stops to carefully listen. “What the. . . . . who does he think he is?” Anyway, the interruption seems to tick off the coyote who throws herself into the next howl with a spirited leap, howls some more, and then hurries off to a place where she might get a view of her competitor. I don’t think she saw anyone. The coyote continued to howl, but the dog did not, and the siren had long since ceased, so things quieted down fairly quickly.
Two Coyotes Squeal Exuberantly After Hearing A Siren
03 Jan 2012 6 Comments
in coyote behavior, squealing, video Tags: coyote behavior, coyote squealing, coyotes, urban coyotes
You can imagine my disappointment when this video came out blurry — even when I refocused it stayed blurry. However, the sound is clear: two coyotes yip after hearing a siren. The other coyote initiated the yipping — that one was about 150 feet away from this one, and this one joined in. It was a very short yipping session which lasted just over what I was able to capture in the video. The same high-pitched sounds that were used here for responding to sirens, are also used as happy greeting vocalizations.
Some individuals mistakenly have thought that these high pitched squeals were the sounds of puppies and spread rumors that there were coyote puppies around, when in fact, it was just adults squealing their adult squeals. As you can see from the video, these are adult vocalizations. And, again, there were only two coyotes involved, though one might easily think that the sounds were coming from many coyotes.
Trekking Purposefully
12 Dec 2011 1 Comment
in communication, coyote behavior, trekking Tags: coyote behavior, coyote communication, coyotes, urban coyotes
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- following a narrow and off-beat path
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- moving onto the sidewalk
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- crossing a large street
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- moving out of the way, but not far from a passing car on the street
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- taking a playbreak in someone’s yard
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- trespassing through small urban properties
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- back into the street
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- while the sentry waits for the coast to clear, the other one hunts
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- They urinated regularly as they trekked. Here they ducked under & I couldn’t follow any longer
I was able to follow two coyotes for about half an hour as they trekked through an urban neighborhood, crossing streets, over dirt paths and sidewalks and through yards, ducking into and out of hidden spaces — their pace and course were very purposeful. I didn’t see where they ended up, which might have helped me decipher what was going on, but the half-hour I watched clearly demonstrated their very keen awareness: their consciousness and knowingness and understanding.
They knew how to follow the vegetation, logs or areas which might offer some protection. The coyotes sniffed and marked/urinated regularly as the terrain changed or when they veered into new areas. At one point, one coyote stood sentry for about five minutes, insuring the coast was clear in all directions before both took off through an area where dogs often congregate, but there were none today. But they also crossed into wide open areas such as streets — once stepping out of the way of a car but remaining in the street within about 10 feet of the car as it passed. Their awareness was keen for everything except cars.
These coyotes were not just meandering around or hunting. They had a plan — a plan they had worked out. They knew exactly what they were doing and where they were headed. How did they know this, and how did they both know this? And how did they communicate this to each other? I have seen coyotes head out in this manner to certain lookout points in order to observe dogs and walkers from the distance — it is very purposeful behavior. But this time, these two disappeared from the main dog walking areas, so that could not have been their motive. Perhaps they had recently found a field full of gophers which they wanted to revisit?
Anyway, the point is that coyotes can be very purposeful. They appear to be able to work out a plan and carry it out and communicate this, and deal with unforeseen interruptions along the way yet continue their plan. For instance, at one point a man saw them and threw stones at them. The coyotes veered off the path and circled around to avoid him — but they then continued in the direction in which they were originally headed. I have seen lions communicate hunting strategy and carry it out. The animals can communicate very effectively in subtle ways that we humans cannot pick up on. We humans aren’t quite smart enough to figure it out! We like to measure animal intelligence against our own — for instance, by how many word/symbols a chimp can manipulate. Wow — they can learn our language! Yet we haven’t been able to learn or decipher theirs!
Kickin’ High
26 Oct 2011 2 Comments
in coyote behavior, hunting, video Tags: coyote, coyote behavior, coyotes, urban coyotes
This coyote is totally absorbed in the job at hand, totally focused. The high-strung tension is palpable as he hesitates and wavers. He holds back, preparing for his big move. He finally lets go like a wound-up coil when he thinks the time is right. Watch those legs fly! In spite of the effort, the vole evaded capture.
Tip Toe!
22 Oct 2011 1 Comment
in coyote behavior, foraging, hunting, video Tags: coyote, coyote behavior, coyote hunting, coyotes
Hunting takes planning and in this case that plan included moving ever so slowly, and ever so carefully and ever so softly. The coyote had been sitting watching one spot for several minutes, then got up and tip-toed to a better spot where it stood quietly and calmly for a long time — sometimes staring at the ground and turning its head, and sometimes just looking into the distance. Nothing came of it — the coyote was not rewarded for its quietness and patience. I’m posting just a short clip with the careful tip-toe. I cut out the rest because I know the coyote has more patience in waiting for its meal than we might have in observing it!
Lapping Up The Dew
10 Oct 2011 Leave a Comment
in coyote behavior, lapping Tags: coyote, coyote behavior, coyotes
It was fun watching this coyote cross an entire grassy soccer field with it’s head lowered to the ground as it walked, slurping up the dew that was soaking the grass. I wonder if this was something like drinking through a straw?!
Grunting More Than Huffing Here
10 Oct 2011 2 Comments
in coyote behavior, coyote reactions to dogs Tags: coyote, coyote behavior, coyotes, coyotes and dogs
This video, again, shows the reaction of a coyote to a hostile dog appearing on a path about 200 feet away. Coyotes seem not to be bothered by dogs that have never bothered them. So when a dog appears that causes a coyote to react this way, it is because of the dog’s previous behaviors — a coyote always remembers each dog and its behaviors, be it a blatant antagonism, or something more subtle like a “dirty look”. I’ve seen this over and over again. By the time I got the camera set up, most of the grunting was over — it had gone on for over a minute. The grunts are very audible in this video. Fortunately the walker and his dog veered off the path and left the area, so the grunting just petered out, as in the last video I posted. The coyote took the opportunity to lie down right there where it was camouflaged by the tall grasses. Coyotes frequently are right there in the open, but you can’t see them!
Shortly after this grunting episode, another dog and walker — with a history of being hostile and antagonistic towards coyotes — appeared in the distance. The coyote heard them coming and stood up, waited until they were in sight, and, before being seen by them, trotted off into some bushes rather than wait for the possibility of an encounter. I’m sure if the coyote had stayed down, it would not have been seen, but it chose not to take this chance.
One might wonder why a coyote would be out when dog walkers are out. Do rodents tend to stick their noses out more during certain times, making hunting more successful at these times? I don’t know, it’s just a guess. Also, though, coyotes seem to want to get a glimpse of what is going on in “their” territories before hunkering down for the day.
The Huffing Continued
07 Oct 2011 Leave a Comment
in coyote behavior, coyote reactions to dogs, huffing, video Tags: coyote, coyote behavior, coyote huffing, coyotes, coyotes and dogs, huffing
This is actually a continuation of the last posting on “Coyote Huffing”. I should have included it in that posting. By the time I took this second video, the coyote had sat down. But you can still see the movements of her throat, huffing and puffing, during the first 13 seconds of the clip. The activity is very quiet, barely audible, if at all in the clip, but nonetheless audible in real life. In this case, after the huffing stopped, at 13 seconds into the clip, the coyote calmed down and the matter was forgotten for the time being. The coyote soon got up and continued her slow trek towards one of her snoozing spots.
Coyote Huffing
04 Oct 2011 Leave a Comment
in coyote behavior, coyote reactions to dogs, huffing Tags: coyote, coyote behavior, coyotes
The coyote was minding its own business, looking for a possible meal on a grassy area. Occasionally she would look up to watch walkers in the distance. Then, suddenly an unleashed dog caught her eye. The unleashed dog glared at her giving her a feeling of uneasiness. This dog has regularly chased the coyote in the past, and, of course, the coyote remembers all such incidents. Fortunately, the owner saw what was happening and was able to grab the dog.
However, the coyote remained upset — it is not easy for anyone to turn around their fears and uneasiness on a dime. After running over to a bush, she watched as the dog and walker left, but her emotions were running high. She sat there, huffing her discontentment. Notice her throat area which shows the huffing after she reached the bush. Very often, this kind of soft huffing segue’s into a loud and distressed barking session. It did not happen this time probably because the dog left, though that is no assurance that the barking won’t happen anyway. This adult coyote, whom I have seen and know to be an “alpha” coyote — was openly displaying her feelings. In fact, whenever you see a coyote in some kind of fired-up state, it is expressing its feelings — and these feelings are a reaction to the situation at hand.
