Coyotes that kill

It's been a banner year on our farm for coyotes, or coy-wolves. They move through the woods at the edge of our fields -- and at night their howls are pretty fantastic.

I've always thought of coyotes as being one of the cooler, human-compatible top-tier predators. They hunt everything from rabbits to deer with aplomb.

But now there's a report of a fatal coyote attack on a young woman, 19-year-old Taylor Mitchell, in Nova Scotia, Canada.

Wildlife biologist Bob Bancroft said coyote attacks are extremely rare because the animals are usually shy.

Bancroft, a retired biologist with Nova Scotia's Department of Natural Resources, said it's possible the coyotes thought Mitchell was a deer or other prey.

"It's very unusual and is not likely to be repeated," Bancroft said. "We shouldn't assume that coyotes are suddenly going to become the big bad wolf."

Read more at: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/10/28/taylor-mitchell-singerson_n_337836.html

Here's the NYS DEC guidebook to coyote conflicts. Their advice includes this, reasonable observation:

Some coyotes in suburbia have lost their fear of people. This can result in a dangerous situation. A coyote who does not fear people should be considered dangerous. Coyotes in residential areas quickly learn to associate food with people.

Suburban coyote food (garbage, pet food, pets) is saturated with human odor. Human behavior has changed to be non-threatening to coyotes (running into your home after seeing a coyote is behaving like prey).

In short, food smells like people and people behave like prey. Add to the mix people intentionally feeding coyotes and the potential for a coyote attack becomes very real.

Potential does exist for coyote attacks in New York. However, a little perspective may be in order. On average 650 people are hospitalized and one person killed by dogs each year in New York State. Nationwide, only a handful of coyote attacks occur yearly.