Some Coyote Facts

Coyotes come in different colors. Blonde, brown, grey, mixed.

Coyotes travel around 2 miles at night. (update, read somewhere else they can travel 50 miles).

Coyotes hunt mainly at night.

Coyotes fear large dogs and people (under normal wild conditions).

Coyotes eat almost anything when hungry enough -- garbage, fruit, cats, small dogs.

Coyotes like to eat mice, rabbits, and squirrels in the wild.

Books I'm Reading for my Neighbor Coyotes in Western Mass

Coyote: Seeking the Hunter in Our Midst by Catherine Reid.
Suburban Howls: Tracking the Eastern Coyote in Urban Massachusetts by Jonathan G. Way.
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Eastern Coyotes Come to Town

For several weeks there's been some neighborhood commotion over the coyotes who have made their presence known. One woman spotted a single coyote coming out of the woods while she was walking and said to me, "I saw this dog that had the body of a fox but the head of a wolf and it was big as your dog(a lab mix). It poked its head out of the woods as I passed on the road. It was beautiful." Another woman was very happy to see it after she had heard so many reports of its existence. She finally saw it one morning chasing a rabbit through her yard. Many of us, if we hadn't seen one by December 30th were disappointed as if we weren't among the elite. We would pass each other on the road and the question would inevitablly rise from one of us "Have you seen the coyote"? I finally saw one, the one we're calling "the blonde one" while walking my dog quite late, around 11 pm. It was a very large dog, and a dirty yellow white. It hung around the snow banks and did a lot of weaving along the road as if trying to dodge its own shadow. It kept far enough away so I was comfortable but it was bit unnerving. I feel awe in the presence of the wild. I'd never been that close to a truly wild animal not in a cage except for a bear once in California. I love sharing my neighborhood with wildlife but I worry: Will people keep them safe and themselves, too. Will they be tempted to feed them and create problems such as coyotes becoming agressive around food? Will they keep their cats in, especially at night? I hope I'll see them again. I am pretty certain that I will because they'll have some pups soon. There's just enough woods here for them and for that we're fortunate.