Just saw a big coyote

[look 171]

I just went to my car ( my best work time is now with everyone in bed) to get a set of plans to review for a meeting next week and came across this giant Coyote on the street. it scared the heck out of me. He was as big as a small size German Shepperd. Are they getting that big around your neck of the woods? Also notice a couple more coming up the street under very dim street lights. I stomped my feet and he ran off into the brush.

[wdfifteen]

They are fairly scrawny here - maybe 50 lbs. They run in packs, hardly ever see one alone. You can tell a coyote run because it is one narrow (3-4 inches), well-worn winding trail. They walk precisely in each other's footsteps.

[slodave]

They run alone a lot around here. One trick that they have adapted to, is to have a one visible, a decoy, while the rest of the pack remains hidden and surrounds the prey.

[M.D. Holloway]

Could have been a wolf/coyote hybrid. It's a real deal. Actually a new specie. They are bigger than a regular coyote and have the DNA of wolfs and dog mixed in with a new strain. Zoologist have identified them as a new breed. Coyotes with a larger frame and a stronger pack mentality.

[slodave]

We don't have wolves down here in L.A.

[9dreizig]

Originally Posted by M.D. Holloway

Could have been a wolf/coyote hybrid. It's a real deal. Actually a new specie. They are bigger than a regular coyote and have the DNA of wolfs and dog mixed in with a new strain. Zoologist have identified them as a new breed. Coyotes with a larger frame and a stronger pack mentality.

From what I"ve read they are not west of the rockies yet Mike,, but most on the east coast are the hybrid

[crownarch]

Originally Posted by slodave

We don't have wolves down here in L.A.

Yes you do but, difficult to identify because they are dressed in sheep's clothing.

[fingpilot]

I hit a coyote in Sepulveda Pass at 3am-ish a while ago. The damage was almost $3000. and a foot to the left and I would have missed him. On the 405 westbound. They are all over LaLaLand.

Late night touchdown at Fort Lauderdale International. 3 miles out I saw a centerline light that was missing. Right in the touchdown zone. Very light traffic at that time. As I lifted the nose to flare, the area of the missing light came into my landing lights.

I saw three small heads pop up from a mound of fur, looking, but not moving, at me. The mains touched down right where they were. I didn't feel any thumps or bumps. The track of the mains are 30 feet wide.

The security sweep of the runway after I cleared was clear. I didn't hit them, and they were gone. It was a full 10 seconds after clearing the runway that my silent F/O said anything.

That was a very lucky coyote family.

[nynor]

Originally Posted by slodave

We don't have wolves down here in L.A.

cougars?

[mikester]

We see them in the basin early in the mornings often enough when I go flying.

[BlueSkyJaunte]

[KevinP73]

Originally Posted by crownarch

Yes you do but, difficult to identify because they are dressed in lawyer's clothing.

Fixed it for ya.

[look 171]

They got my neighbor's dog some months ago. A little one was sent to arouse the dogs so they can give chase into an area where the big ones were hiding. As soon as the three dogs get there, they were jumped by the larger coyotes.

Tell me about the hybrids from the east coast. Are they more aggressive? I think they will make their way out west because those suckers are true survivors.

[KevinP73]

The coywolf, a mixture of western coyote and eastern wolf, is a remarkable new hybrid carnivore that is taking over territories once roamed by wolves and slipping unnoticed into our cities. Its appearance is very recent — within the last 90 years — in evolutionary terms, a blip in time. Beginning in Canada but by no means ending there, the story of how it came to be is an extraordinary tale of how quickly adaptation and evolution can occur, especially when humans interfere. Tag along as scientists study this new top predator, tracking it from the wilderness of Ontario’s Algonquin Park, through parking lots, alleys and backyards in Toronto all the way to the streets of New York City.

It's late and I'm too tired to find the embed code. I'll have one of my minions do that for me. In the meantime here's a link to the full episode.
Watch Meet the Coywolf | Nature | PBS | Nature | PBS

[slodave]

[Laneco]

I've been playing in the woods on the west coast all of my life. Something I've noticed is that the coyotes in the urban and near to urban areas are bigger than they used to be. No scientific data on this, but I'd say they've picked up close to 15 pounds and 3 or 4 inches of height. Their carriage is also different, heads up, no slinking/slouching. They cruise like they own the area.

I suspect they've crossbred with dogs and/or wolves/wolf hybrids, out here as well. Probably wolves up in the north and more likely dogs in the south.

angela

[Evans, Marv]

We have tons of normal coyotes around here and can hear them yelping across the canyon and upslope behind our house. We like it. I have started carrying a 22 cal. pistol when walking or hiking in the area, but they're skittish of people. I think I'm going to upgrade to 9 mm., because I recently learned a feral pig area is less than a mile from our place in an area where we walk at times. There have been reports of them charging people in some of the areas they inhabit around here.

[Jeff Higgins]

Originally Posted by Laneco

I've been playing in the woods on the west coast all of my life. Something I've noticed is that the coyotes in the urban and near to urban areas are bigger than they used to be. No scientific data on this, but I'd say they've picked up close to 15 pounds and 3 or 4 inches of height. Their carriage is also different, heads up, no slinking/slouching. They cruise like they own the area.

I suspect they've crossbred with dogs and/or wolves/wolf hybrids, out here as well. Probably wolves up in the north and more likely dogs in the south.

angela

I've been bumming around the northwest woods all of my life as well, and I kinda thought I was noticing the same thing, starting oh, maybe 15-20 years ago. I'm glad someone else has noticed this too.

I've shot a fairly decent pile of coyotes in my day, well into the several hundreds. We used to get real money for them... I would say the average adult male went less than thirty pounds. These were all out of the dryer parts of eastern Washington, where we could set up and call in open, rolling sagebrush covered hills. I quit doing this actively probably 25 years ago, but I'll still wander on over to my favorite spots on the odd occasion and have a peek.

Both numbers and average size appear to be up. If there were still any money in it, it might be fun to go over and pop a few, just to see if there is anything to this. I wonder, though, what fate may await anyone unlucky enough to shoot a hybrid...

[WPOZZZ]

Originally Posted by nynor

cougars?

The Brentwood variety.

[slodave]

I've been playing in the woods on the west coast all of my life. Something I've noticed is that the coyotes in the urban and near to urban areas are bigger than they used to be. No scientific data on this, but I'd say they've picked up close to 15 pounds and 3 or 4 inches of height. Their carriage is also different, heads up, no slinking/slouching. They cruise like they own the area.



I suspect they've crossbred with dogs and/or wolves/wolf hybrids, out here as well. Probably wolves up in the north and more likely dogs in the south.



angela

My guess would be because they are eating better than their counterparts that are away from people. And endless supply of food (trash) and pets will help them grow. The coyotes in the city here are bigger as well.