| A grizzled grey or reddish-grey coat with buff underparts, long, rusty or yellowish legs and a bushy tail characterize the coyote. They have arresting, yellow eyes and prominent ears. Average weight is 20-40 pounds. The coyote was originally native only to the prairies and the arid west but as settlers moved across the country, altering the landscape and doing away with wolves, a new niche was opened up to the coyote. They now thrive in the Western Hemisphere from the Pacific to the Atlantic Oceans. The coyote may pair for life and each year up to 19 young are born. Eating almost anything it can chew, coyote is a opportunistic and cunning hunter. Known to run up to 40 m.p.h., they often combine efforts with 1 or 2 others when running their prey. The typical den is a wide mouthed tunnel, terminating in an enlarged nesting area. Predators once included the grizzly and the black bears, mountain lions and wolves but due to their declining populations these are no longer a threat. Since coyote pelts have become increasingly valuable, man is the major enemy. |
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