Tracks & Scat (coyote)

[Mistwalker]

Took the little one on a hike this evening to let her blow off a little steam, explore, and run wild.

We found one fairly recent set of tracks and some interesting scat that wasn't on this road day before yesterday when I was there. The rains last night made for a good set of tracks that I'm thinking are coyote.

The primary contents of the scat appear to be persimmon seeds (which seems odd because it has been weeks since I saw any persimmons), corn, and fur. Funny, this was something never seen in this area when I was a kid

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[Swampdog]

I agree with you, coyote.... great pictures!

 

[Mistwalker]

I agree with you, coyote.... great pictures!

Thanks man, glad you liked them. I'm pretty sure on both, but the content of the scat is confusing.

 

[Watchful]

Coyote indeed.

In addition to the size, you had a great idea to take a wider shot of the tracks, which shows the straight-line but trotting angle common to coyotes. They don't move like dogs or wolves, which your photo captures perfectly. If you stare long enough, you can even visualize the coyote trotting along on the sand.

Also, the fur in the scat is an obvious giveaway.

Great deductive work!

Hope she had fun on that adventure, too.

 

[WILLIAM.M]

Excellent photos

Thanks for posting

 

[TheGame]

Good pics. I just saw a coyote a couple days ago on my way to work. It was running alongside a housing development.

 

[Mistwalker]

Coyote indeed.

In addition to the size, you had a great idea to take a wider shot of the tracks, which shows the straight-line but trotting angle common to coyotes. They don't move like dogs or wolves, which your photo captures perfectly. If you stare long enough, you can even visualize the coyote trotting along on the sand.

Also, the fur in the scat is an obvious giveaway.

Great deductive work!

Hope she had fun on that adventure, too.

Thanks for the input. I have gotten to see full strings of the tracks and positively identified scat only a couple of times before and that was up in Illinois. I have never found more than one or two tracks at a time in muddy spots here before, which I have found several of. I've never gotten to find scat here that I was sure was coyote before. All of the seeds throw me off though. I was under the impression coyotes were carnivores. Are they omnivores, or is it likely the contents are the stomach contents of something it ate?

Last summer I found some scat that looks like bear scat. It looks like it was eating persimmons and there were a few persimmon trees in the area.

Excellent photos

Thanks for posting

Thanks Bill, glad you enjoyed them.

Good pics. I just saw a coyote a couple days ago on my way to work. It was running alongside a housing development.

Their numbers are definitely increasing here. I have seen them in the parking lots of stores that have large areas of woods on the edges of their parking lots, and I have seen them in neighborhoods. That is the best set of tracks I've found yet, and that is on a 26,000 acre Wildlife Management Area.

 

[Watchful]

I was under the impression coyotes were carnivores. Are they omnivores, or is it likely the contents are the stomach contents of something it ate?

Coyotes, like all canids, are omnivores. Of course, if you give a dog a choice between meat and salad, they'e going to take the meat. But coyotes if hungry enough will make a meal out of nearly anything.

The idea that the coyote ate something that ate the persimmons is interesting and even plausible; but those seeds are huge and numerous. Whatever else might have eaten the would probably be too big for the coyote to eat. I'm going to suspect that the coyote ate them.

They don't look very digested, so there's a chance the persimmons didn't quite agree with the coyote.

 

[Mistwalker]

Coyotes, like all canids, are omnivores. Of course, if you give a dog a choice between meat and salad, they'e going to take the meat. But coyotes if hungry enough will make a meal out of nearly anything.

The idea that the coyote ate something that ate the persimmons is interesting and even plausible; but those seeds are huge and numerous. Whatever else might have eaten the would probably be too big for the coyote to eat. I'm going to suspect that the coyote ate them.

They don't look very digested, so there's a chance the persimmons didn't quite agree with the coyote.

Thanks for the input. I am really not all that familiar with coyotes and their dietary habits. They were one county west a few years ago but only this year have I seen so many of them in that area and lately they have been running the the roads in my neighborhood. So now they have become an area of study for me. Went for a walk today after work and found more coyote tracks, and some bear tracks and scat I believe.

 

[Shotgun]

I wonder what the technical definition of carnivore is. Seems every animal I know as carnivorous also eats plants.

Another thing I wonder...does your(grand daughter?) realize that as much fun she's having, you're having a hundred fold watching her.

 

[Mistwalker]

I wonder what the technical definition of carnivore is. Seems every animal I know as carnivorous also eats plants.

Another thing I wonder...does your(grand daughter?) realize that as much fun she's having, you're having a hundred fold watching her.

I know, right? I've sat and watched cats eat grass on many occasions.

Actually she is my youngest daughter She knows I have fun, I doubt she ever knows just how much though.

 

[Watchful]

I wonder what the technical definition of carnivore is. Seems every animal I know as carnivorous also eats plants.

Something that only eats meat. Birds of prey, such as hawks and owls, are pure carnivores. Crows and vultures from the scavenger family are pure carnivores.

Alligators, crocs, etc., are examples from the reptile family.

Mammals might surprise you: while most "carnivorous" mammals are indeed omnivores, seals and sea lions are purely carnivorous.

And before Esav beats me to it, I once knew a walrus that only ate eggmen.

 

[RedbeAR15]

Interesting diet - Looks like a yote for sure, and the seeds and corn indicate he must be hungry one too

 

[dboles]

Nice pictures.A common trait on most coyote tracks is the the 2 centre toes they are always paired up close like that. Very distinctive A good indicator to tell the difference between them and say a domestic dog of the same size
Coyote is much like a seagull or a raven-They will make scat out of it if they can keep it down! lol They will try to eat anything one of the reasons they can live close to us -nothing specialized about coyotes
Dan'l

 

[Mistwalker]

Interesting diet - Looks like a yote for sure, and the seeds and corn indicate he must be hungry one too

That's what I was thinking. Funny though...I have seen a heck of a rabbit population up there this year and there is fur in the scat.

Nice pictures.A common trait on most coyote tracks is the the 2 centre toes they are always paired up close like that. Very distinctive A good indicator to tell the difference between them and say a domestic dog of the same size
Coyote is much like a seagull or a raven-They will make scat out of it if they can keep it down! lol They will try to eat anything one of the reasons they can live close to us -nothing specialized about coyotes
Dan'l

Thanks for the input Dan'l

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[Joezilla]

Coyotes have a more narrow front paw, different sized than the back. Thats how I tell'em away from dogs. They work better for catching mice.

A city boy went out West to visit his old Uncle, miles from anywhere, on a big ranch with mostly sand and cactus.
After the sun went down they went to bed, and it was so dark the boy was afraid. As he lay there he heard a mournful, otherworldly sound.
Frightened, he called out to the old Uncle, There's werewolves! I hear werewolves"!
"That's rubbish, Boy. Ain't no sech thing", his Uncle answered.
"Then it must be man-eating wolves"!
"No. we don't have those either. Now go to sleep"!
The sound started again.
"Then, what is it"? he called out, terrified.
"They're only coyotes".
"Coyotes? What's that"?
"They're a lot like dogs. In fact, you can consider them a kind of dog".
"Then why are they making this horrible noise"?
" See, Boy, we ain't got many trees around here,. We got Cactuses"!

 

[Mistwalker]

Coyotes have a more narrow front paw, different sized than the back. Thats how I tell'em away from dogs. They work better for catching mice.

A city boy went out West to visit his old Uncle, miles from anywhere, on a big ranch with mostly sand and cactus.
After the sun went down they went to bed, and it was so dark the boy was afraid. As he lay there he heard a mournful, otherworldly sound.
Frightened, he called out to the old Uncle, There's werewolves! I hear werewolves"!
"That's rubbish, Boy. Ain't no sech thing", his Uncle answered.
"Then it must be man-eating wolves"!
"No. we don't have those either. Now go to sleep"!
The sound started again.
"Then, what is it"? he called out, terrified.
"They're only coyotes".
"Coyotes? What's that"?
"They're a lot like dogs. In fact, you can consider them a kind of dog".
"Then why are they making this horrible noise"?
" See, Boy, we ain't got many trees around here,. We got Cactuses"!

Interesting, do you mean as in digging them out of burrows or as in running them down and actually catching them?

Lmao, that's funny!