Wind Cave National Park - Coyote (U.S. National Park Service)

NPS Photo by Tom Bean

Coyote - Canis latrans
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Class	Mammalia
Order	Carnivora
Family	Canidae (dog family) including wolves, foxes.
Genus	Canis
Species	latrans
Name/ History	Long considered by some a pest. Under a predator elimination program, coyotes were trapped in the park in the early days of animal management. Coyote is from the Aztec cord coyotl meaning barking dog.
Size Weight (lbs)	Male 20-50	Female 16-40	Young 1-1.5
Height (ft)	2	2
Tail (ft)	2-3
Mate	January/February
Gestation	60-63 days
Birth	April/May, eyes open 9-14 days, weaned 5-7 weeks, emerge from den 3 weeks.
# young	5-10
Age	13-14 years, 18 years in captivity.
Habitat/ Range	Prairies, open woodlands, brushy areas. Live in dens. Range from Alaska and Canada through most of the U.S. except for the Southeast and Northeast, into Mexico. Current research.
Food	Extremely diverse - rodents, rabbits, berries.
Enemies	Man
Disease	Rabies, distemper
Communication	Yap, howl to call young, socialize.
Behavior/ Characteristics	Mostly nocturnal, scavenger, less social than wolves. Because of the coyote's extraordinary ability to adapt, its habitat and range is increasing.