Attack of the Killer Coyotes

A hungry coyote.  Photo courtesy of USDA.

We are counting our blessings in New England.  This is the mildest winter we have seen in many years.  But while we walk and jog and even play golf, luxuriating in moderate temperatures and enjoying the lack of snow, there is a grim struggle for survival going on.

The number of coyote attacks reported this winter has been rapidly escalating.  Dogs injured and killed, cats missing without a trace, and even children bitten and terrorized.  What the heck is going on?  Have coyotes suddenly turned malevolent, possessed by evil spirits?

No, the answer is far simpler, and in two parts.  First, as we have become an urban nation,  coyotes have extended their range into our suburbs while at the same time we have stopped vigorously hunting them; they have lost their fear of man.  But this is a long term trend that has played out over many decades. Of more immediate portent, they are ravenous. Slowly starving, they are driven to attack pets and children and livestock and whatever else might keep them sustained for another day.

The question begs to be answered: why? The proximate cause is an extreme lack of acorns.  In a good year (called a high mast year), a single large oak tree can produce tens of thousands of acorns.  In a low mast year, perhaps half that.  But in the autumn of 2011, there were large tracts of New England without an acorn.  Nary a one.  And that is catastrophic for mice and chipmunks and squirrels and many other direct acorn-eaters including wild turkeys, quail, and deer.  Some ecologists have estimated that up to 90% of the current rodent population could die by spring.  This puts enormous pressure on coyotes and other predators, such as foxes and weasels and hawks and owls, who must compete for that rapidly dwindling food supply.

No wonder the coyotes are famished.

But where did the acorns go?  There are multiple theories; here are two that seem most likely, especially in tandem:

1. In the spring of 2010, we suffered extremely heavy rains and flooding.  This excessive moisture interfered with the pollination of oak flowers, the necessary precursor to acorns.
2. The intense winter moth infestation in the autumn of 2010 caused the trees to be nearly defoliated the following spring.  This greatly stressed the oaks.

Perhaps as result of two consecutive whammies, the 2011 acorn yield was a record near-zero.  It is most likely that we will soon return to normal mast production and a recovery of the rodent population will remove pressure from coyotes and other predators.  Hard spring rains are not typically intense enough to interfere with the blooming of oaks.  And there is a new tool for winter moth control.  Cyzenis albicans, a parasitic fly imported from Europe (where winter moths originated) is showing promise in controlling moth outbreaks.

So the problem remains, how to minimize the risk of coyote attacks?  Here is a short list of ideas from the Massachusetts Department of Fish and Game and the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation:

• Don't let coyotes intimidate you. Don't hesitate to scare or threaten coyotes with loud noises and bright lights. Don't hesitate to pick up small objects, such as a tennis ball, and throw them at the coyote. If a water hose is close at hand, spray the coyote with water in the face. Let the coyote know it is unwelcome in your area.
• Secure your garbage. Coyotes will raid open trash materials and compost piles. Secure your garbage in tough plastic containers with tight fitting lids and keep in secure buildings when possible. Take out trash on the morning pick up is scheduled, not the previous night. Keep compost in containers designed to contain but vent the material.
• Don't feed or try to pet coyotes. Keep wild things wild. Feeding, whether direct or indirect, can cause coyotes to act tame and over time may lead to bold behavior. Coyotes that rely on natural food items remain wild and wary of humans.
•  Keep your pets safe. Coyotes view cats and small dogs as potential food and larger dogs as competition. For the safety of your pets, keep them restrained at all times.   
• Eliminate availability of bird seed. Coyotes are attracted to the concentration of birds and rodents that come to feeders. If you do feed birds, clean up waste seed and spillage.
• Ask your neighbors to follow these same steps.

Some of these may seem cruel… poor squirrels, poor birds!  Why can’t we feed them?  But remember that you are trying to save Tabby and Rover and even Junior from becoming a coyote meal.  Mother nature will return to a balance – have faith.