Coyote, "The Desert Wolf": A Species Far More Unique Than Wolves and Dogs alike.

For some of us who followed the Teen Wolf series, we saw a true alpha by the name Scott Mcall and some other mythical and supernatural beings but, all the way to the end, what was most fascinating was that they had different kinds of them.

Some were Alphas like Scott and dukellion, others were betas and omegas, and each of them, all unique in diverse ways.

Wikimedia: Coyote From Yosemite National Park Author, Yathin S Krishnappa Licensed under, CC BY-SA

However, the kinds that struck me the most were the Coyotes you know, the ones with the sharp dark-light blue eyes, the kind that you can't just stop staring at, although its not really blue at all in real life.

Nevertheless, the character used for the Coyote actually did fine work, wouldn't you agree?

Today I bring to you with warmness in my heart, the Coyotes, a very significant species in the Canis family and a remarkable creature in the animal kingdom generally.

Coyotes-The Desert Wolf

For centuries, the Desert wolves have roamed the woods, scavenging and walking the lands beyond. They are quite unique and are sensitive to any and everything in their surroundings and Thanks to the blockbuster series Teen Wolf, we see malia playing the role of a coyote.

A Walk Into The Woods;

Coyotes are members of the Canis family, and because of this, they share characteristic traits with their fellow species; wolves, foxes, dogs, and jackals.

Coyotes come from a long-lasting line of the dog family, although most scientific animal research would say that they belong to Canidae family. Native to Americans, the Coyotes are often called "Little Wolves" or in other cases, "Desert Wolves”.

Coyotes are mostly relative to folklore tales. Its name is gotten from the Aztec word "coyotl". Scientifically the coyotes are called "Canis Latrans" which literally means "Barking Dogs”.

The coyote is quite similar to both the wolf and also the fox, though, in proper context, Coyotes are quite small when compared to a wolf they’re quite big when compared with a fox.
They are largely built than foxes but smaller, if compared to a wolf and It might interest you to know that, they aren't actually wolves.

Though the coyote is referred to as the desert wolf, it is more or less, it's own kind of species and it differs from a wolf and dog with several characteristic traits respectively. For example, the wolves tend to raise their tail slightly above their body structure while scavenging, hunting and walking. The same thing goes for dogs too, they raise their tails all the time, just above the ground, and a little bit over their body, but it is different for the Coyotes since they do not carry their tales high. The coyotes carry their tails low mostly when hunting and running.

A Brief History

Coyotes were first discovered in the early EthiopianColonization of America. They were actually confined in arid regions of the west although it wasn't clearly distinguished if they were wolves or coyotes.

In 1800, some other breakthroughs were made. In Edwards County, some wolves were discovered as a result of their howling at night. It was stated that they were likely coyotes and not wolves since their pattern of howling was quite different from a typical wolf.

In September 1819, precisely on the site of Lewis and Clark's Council Bluffs, fifteen miles up the Missouri River from the mouth of the Platte during a government-sponsored expedition with Major Stephen Long, the coyotes were described scientifically by a naturalist entomologist and dermatologist, Thomas Say.

Description And Behavior

Coyotes are widely referred to as Wolves but when placed in contrast, you will find that these creatures are mostly doglike in nature, with a slightly different feeling and character to that of the modern red wolf.

A coyote ranges from around 75 – 87 centimeters( I.e 30 – 34 inches) in length. Its weight on average is about 6 – 21 kilograms (14 – 46 pounds). Coyotes are Grayish-brown in color, all the way to the neck region which is often yellowish-brown in nature, and It's underparts are covered in White-brown fur.

Its tail is quite the size though, it ranges from 40 – 60 inches in length and often bushy. Coyotes have large ears, that are triangular in shape which they use for effectively listening especially when listening for coyote cries. Coyotes are quite similar to Dogs and wolves as I said earlier, but if you really wanna get to know if a coyote is a coyote, just simply observe the way with which it's tail moves while it's running or in motion, that's if you were caught up in the woods, you know.

Canis latarans have different colors of furs, from gray-brown to yellow, and yellowish brown while its underparts are lighter in color. Coyotes are known to reach their maximum size within their first year and its closely related species reach their max size during the second year.

Pixabay: coyote just before Dawn

Coyotes are quite smart, though they may be animals they are really clever, not forgetting, Super smart. Often times, they are referredto as “Wily”, plus they possess certain spectacular gifts including, heightenedsenses for smelling and hearing. They are skilled in creating strong groups for themselves, for taking care of each other.

Coyotes are crepuscular animals, which means that they are most active at dawn and dusk. Coyotes have a very distinctive and unique way of communicating, they are equally distinguished by their thick long brownish tail which is often held low to the ground. Coyotes are nocturnal which would make them most active at nights and mostly dark places. The coyotes if not threatened by man, will choose to hunt in the day time for food, since they possess a survivor’s instinct.

Funnily enough, in some cultures Native to America, coyotes are referred to as the most knowledgeable tricksters, clowns that teach certain lessons. Subsequently, they are called "The Creators", what a fascinating description, right?

Resident And Transient Coyotes

Coyotes that move in packs are often called Resident coyotes, they belong to a family group(pack) and help defend their territory against other coyotes.

Transient Coyotes are solitary individuals with no group or pack, just like the omegas in Teenwolf with no pack. Transients can join other packs with the consent of the alpha, and for some solitary coyotes that aren't accepted into packs, they end up staying close to roadsides and eventually get hit by vehicles.

Hunting, Feeding And Mating For The Desert Wolf

Coyotes are quite skillful, when it comes to Hunting, and feeding. Coyotes are mostly intimated by Man, which pushes or drives them into hiding in the day and since they are nocturnal, they’ll hunt only at night and maybe sometimes in the day, with the exception that they aren't being threatened.

The Deers Are A Preferred Hunt

Since they can't hunt freely in the daytime, the stray deers that roam the woods at night are always endangered. Coyotes tend to hunt alone and rarely in packs but when it comes to hunting certain large animals including the deers, they make an exception.

Pixabay: A Deer

A Desert wolf’s first instinct while hunting is not to bruise or scratch the body of its prey, to leave it defenseless or weak. Its first instinct while hunting is to kill on sight and as the season goes by, they choose smaller preys to hunt and take back home(den) for their pups.

Besides the underlying fact that coyotes are small in nature, they are really fierce hunters, i mean they are skilled hunters and it gets more skillful when they hunt in packs. Coyotes have a diverse strategy for hunting, they are super-duper clever, not forgetting opportunistic when it comes to hunting.

If coyotes learn about certain livestock and their location, they tend to frequent that location since they know that, come rain, come sunshine they would always find livestock and pets, though its a 50/50 percent chance that they themselves will come out of it unharmed. The only reason why coyote will hunt alone is if its aim is to catch little preys like a field mouse, rabbit e.t.c. Coyotes are basically meat eaters as most people would think and their diet is 90% mammalian but they are also omnivorous creatures, snacking on plants, rodents, fruits, and grass. To find out the diet composition of a coyote, you might need to look for a dead one, you will find that rodents are nearly always present in the diets.

Mating For Coyotes

Generally, all coyotes mate during A certain time in February and March. Sadly, the mechanism for mating is quite weird because, during bonds between alpha pairs, one has to die for the pups to be born which simply means that alpha bonds are broken upon the death of one pair. During mating, other coyotes excluding the alpha, help grow the young ones(pups), providing support for the entire pack.

Pxhere: Pack of coyotes

Whenever spring comes, female coyotes prepare dens for their young and since they have a gestation period of about 63-64 days, they produce offsprings in groups of 4-12 at a stretch. Each coyote baby is called a pup but generally, they are referred to as litters when born.

Research has shown that its reproduction is dependent on their habitat and the population of coyotes in the area. The greater the population of coyotes in any area, the lesser the litters produced and invariably, the lower the population of coyotes in a certain enviro, the more litters of coyotes produced.

According To N.T.A, evidence suggests that coyotes tend to mate for life with the fate that sends one pair to death and also the mothers tend to spend nothing more than 12-13 days with the pups till their eyes are open. Just like humans, when the wife gives birth, the man takes care of both her and the babies, the same goes for coyotes.

How Long Can A Coyote Live?

Like everything upon the surface of the earth, Death is inevitable, all life must go through the last process of life on earth Which is Death and that includes the coyotes. Coyotes are not supernatural creatures like in the movies, they are natural creatures that will eventually die.

However, Coyotes do survive in Captivity and In the wild. In captivity, Coyotes can live up to about 15 to 20 years but sadly they have no hope for living too long in the wild. In the Wild they, live between 10-14 years approximately.

Coyote Life span also depends on the habitat in contrast. Some have said that coyotes have greater chances of survival in Chicago, though it is subject to change.

Surviving for the coyotes is quite tasking, especially during certain seasons, although most coyotes located in Cook county stand a better chance of survival than most coyotes in the wild. Despite the fact that the coyote population is quite good, it doesn't prevent them from being haunted by the snares of death. In most urban areas, coyotes die due to car accidents, with a 70% death rate every year. Other causes of death are Malnutrition and Shootings, in some places in the world today, humans threaten coyotes and even hunt them down, killing them which eventually reduces their life span.

Conservation Status

The present dispensation that the coyotes are in right now, is no cause for alarm. Presently, coyotes aren't endangered and their population is quite alright in fact, their population is on the high side. Years Back, the U.S government set out to wipe 500,000 coyotes to reduce population growth and it still didn't it profit much.

Pxhere: The Desert Wolf knows its Existence is not threatened

According to the International Union For Conservation Of Nature, coyotes were listed as
least concern when it comes to being endangered and as a matter of fact, their population has never been higher.

Intresting Facts

• Coyotes help control agricultural pests, such as rodents.

• They solitary creatures and mark their territory with urine.

• A coyote will howl back at a human even though it knows that it is not a fellow coyote.

• Coyotes can howl and also bark; their barking is mainly to protect territory.

• Coyotes “Sing” between families, to be able to distinguish its family members from another coyote pack.

• A coyote can run up to 56-69km/h.

• Coyotes are practically good swimmers.

Coyotes are interesting Creatures you know, they know to also howl to the moon and they could also be referred to as prairie wolves or brush wolves. Their unique ability to scent something 350 yards away gives them an edge during hunting and even when they themselves are in danger.

P.S: I sincerely hope you all got something out of this whole interesting piece. Now, you have a few added knowledge about coyotes you know. Thank you for reading!

References

The Desert Wolf

Wikipedia-Coyote

Coyote smart

Coyote Facts

National Trappers

Stay fresh and cool, I’ll be seeing you all around☮️!