Den Hunting as a Means of Coyote Control. Page: 3
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DEN HUNTING AS A MEANS OF COYOTE CONTROL
in mind the places used by pairs of coyotes and visit all old dens known,
as sign may often be discovered there at whelping time. Holes may
be cleaned out in one canyon and the den be just over the hill in
another. Sheep herders on a range usually can give valuable information
as to locations of dens.
The equipment of a den hunter should include at least two good,
gentle saddle horses, a small shovel, a pair of good field glasses, a
rifle of not less than .25 caliber, and a dog. Coyotes are not so much
afraid of a man on horseback as of one on foot. A rider, therefore,
can get many good shots, and in heavy sagebrush he can more easily
see and track coyotes from his vantage seat upon a horse.
Breeding Habits and Number of Young
In the mating season coyotes may be heard yelping much more than
usual, and packs of three to a dozen animals may be seen. Later the
breeding animals pair off. Some pairs may remain together for a
number of years, but as a rule coyotes do not mate for life.
The whelping season varies with latitude. In general, according to
studies of a large number of embryos by G. W. D. Hamlett, of the
Biological Survey, the season in the northern tier of States seems
somewhat earlier than farther south; in Montana, for example, breeding
begins about February 1 and lasts throughout the month, the average
date being February 15. In Texas, breeding seems to begin somewhat
later, although data are inadequate for definite conclusions. In some
States, as in Oregon and Arizona, Hamlett found a variation of at
least 2 months in the time of breeding, probably because of great
diversity in habitat. A study on the spot, with due attention to altitude
and other environmental factors, would probably explain any
unusual variation.
Coyote pups are born 60 to 63 days after breeding. Their eyes
open when they are 9 to 14 days old. The average number of young
to the litter is normally 7. Although there may be smaller litters when
food is scarce, it is not uncommon to find litters of 9 to 12 (fig. 1, A),
and some females have been known to have as many as 17 young.
The only thing provided in the nature of a nest is an enlarged section
of the den, and some dens do not have even this. The pups lie in the
dry dust on the floor.
Dens are often found to contain two litters, one consisting of
young with eyes not yet open and the other of pups about a month
old. One litter may be large and the other small, the latter probably
belonging to a young female that, apparently at a loss for a place to
den, had taken up quarters with her mother. Young females usually
whelp about 10 days to 2 weeks later than the older ones. An occasional
den may harbor three litters. At a den where two litters are
found there is usually only one male, which would suggest polygamy.
Under normal conditions a pair of coyotes is found with every den
unless one parent has been killed. If this happens to be the female
and the pups are young, they die. If they are old enough to eat meat,
the male parent cares for them, as he does his part in providing food.
Denning Sites and Habits
Coyotes do not select denning sites according to any recognizable
rule, but many of them return to the same general locality year after
year, even though dens are regularly dug out and the pups killed by
1329-373
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Young, Stanley Paul, 1889-1969 & Dobyns, Harold W. Den Hunting as a Means of Coyote Control., book, October 1937; Washington D.C.. (https://digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc9194/m1/3/: accessed April 25, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, UNT Digital Library, https://digital.library.unt.edu; crediting UNT Libraries Government Documents Department.