Coyote food habits on the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory

Publication Type:

Journal Article

Authors:

Johnson, Mark K.; Hansen, Richard M.

Source:

Journal of Wildlife Management, The Wildlife Society, Volume 43, Issue 4, p.951-956 (1979)

Call Number:

A79JOH04IDUS

Keywords:

Black-tailed Jackrabbit, Canis latrans, Coyote, Deer Mouse, Lepus californicus, mountain cottontail, northern grasshopper mouse, Nuttall cottontail, Nuttall's cottontail, Onychomys leucogaster, Peromyscus maniculatus, pygmy rabbit, Reithrodontomys megalotis, Sylvilagus nuttallii, western harvest mouse

Abstract:

The Idaho National Engineering Laboratory (INEL [now Idaho National Laboratory, INL]) is used by the U.S. Department of Energy for nuclear reactor facilities and as a National Environmental Research Park. The authors describe coyote (Canis latrans) food habits on the INEL during a period when black-tailed jackrabbit (Lepus californicus) population densities were extremely low and compare coyote use of areas where coyote control was allowed versus areas where control was prohibited. The coyote is widely accepted as an opportunistic predator. However, Murie and others believed that coyotes seek an abundant food and make it a staple. The results of this study support Murie's hypothesis suggesting that the coyote is highly selective rather than opportunistic. There is no evidence to suggest that coyotes are attracted to seasonally abundant livestock. The relative lack of rabbits in livestock-grazed areas may have been responsible for a low level of livestock predation compared to what might have occurred if livestock had been grazed in closer proximity to the coyote staple. When jackrabbits increase on the INEL, there will be an excellent opportunity to study the feeding response of coyotes to changes in the relative availability of rabbits vs. jackrabbits, and there may also be opportunities to compare livestock predation in areas where jackrabbits are abundant compared to areas where they are scarce.

Notes:

Reference Code: A79JOH04IDUS

Full Citation: Johnson, M. K., and R. M. Hansen. 1979. Coyote food habits on the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory. Journal of Wildlife Management 43(4): 951-956.

Location: ANIMAL EF: MAMMALS