Share this Article on Facebook Twitter Submit this article to Reddit Give this article a thumbs-up on StumbleUpon

coyote

coyote

The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed. | 2011 | Copyright

coyote or prairie wolf, small, swift wolf , Canis latrans, native to W North America. It is found in deserts, prairies, open woodlands, and brush country; it is also called brush wolf.

The coyote resembles a medium-sized dog, with a narrow, pointed face, long, thick, tawny fur and a black-tipped bushy tail. Adult males have a head and body length of about 35 in. (89 cm), with a 14-in. (36-cm) tail; they stand 21 in. (53 cm) at the shoulder and usually weigh about 30 lb (14 kg). The cry of the coyote, heard in the early evening, is a series of high-pitched yelps. Coyotes live in pairs, and both parents care for the young; they make their dens in roots of trees, rock crevices, or in ground burrows made by other animals. They are largely nocturnal, but are also seen in the day, and are extremely wary of humans.

They hunt alone, in pairs, or when hunting larger prey in small groups. Omnivorous feeders, they prey on a variety of small animals, sometimes cooperating to attack larger mammals; they also eat plant matter, carrion, and garbage. They can maintain a speed of 35 mi (56 km) per hour while chasing prey. Coyotes are responsible for destroying some domestic livestock, but they are valuable scavengers and destroyers of rodents.

There has almost always been a bounty on coyotes somewhere in the United States, and many thousands are killed each year. Despite this, coyotes have not been reduced in number, and their range has actually increased in the past century, due in part to the fact that many formerly forested areas now more closely resemble the plains and also that the eradication of top-level predators, such as wolves and mountain lions, has left an open ecological niche. Common in the central and W United States, they range N to Alaska, S to Central America, and E to New England and Nova Scotia; they have even begun to move into urban centers, such as New York City. The coyotes of the E United States are larger than those in the West as a result of having interbred with wolves.

The coyote is classified in the phylum Chordata , subphylum Vertebrata, class Mammalia, order Carnivora, family Canidae.

Bibliography: See W. Grady, The Nature of Coyotes (1995).

Show all research tools

Cite this article
Pick a style below, and copy the text for your bibliography.

  • MLA
  • Chicago
  • APA

"coyote." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2011. Encyclopedia.com. 26 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

"coyote." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2011. Encyclopedia.com. (May 26, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1E1-coyote.html

"coyote." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2011. Retrieved May 26, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1E1-coyote.html

Learn more about citation styles

Coyote

Dictionary of American History | 2003 | Copyright

COYOTE

COYOTE (Canis latrans) is a wild dog species, smaller than wolves but larger than foxes. The subject of many Native American creation tales and myths, coyotes came under attack during the twentieth century. Livestock ranchers, aided by government bounty hunters, used poison, traps, and aerial hunting to kill 428,849 coyotes in 1988 and an estimated 20 million during the entire century. Nevertheless, coyotes have expanded their numbers and domain from the trans-Mississippi west to every state except Hawaii because they are omnivorous, adaptable, and freed from competitors and predators by those same hunters. Coyotes demonstrate that humans often cannot control nature as they wish.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Ryden, Hope. God's Dog: A Celebration of the North American Coyote. New York: Lyons and Burford, 1989.

David C.Hsiung

See alsoIndian Oral Literature ; Livestock Industry .
Show all research tools

Cite this article
Pick a style below, and copy the text for your bibliography.

  • MLA
  • Chicago
  • APA

"Coyote." Dictionary of American History. 2003. Encyclopedia.com. 26 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

"Coyote." Dictionary of American History. 2003. Encyclopedia.com. (May 26, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1G2-3401801075.html

"Coyote." Dictionary of American History. 2003. Retrieved May 26, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1G2-3401801075.html

Learn more about citation styles

coyote

The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English | 2009 | Copyright

coy·o·te / ˈkīˌōt; kīˈōtē/ • n. 1. (pl. same or coyotes ) a wolflike wild dog (Canis latrans) native to North America. 2. inf. a person who smuggles Latin Americans across the U.S. border, typically for a high fee.

Show all research tools

Cite this article
Pick a style below, and copy the text for your bibliography.

  • MLA
  • Chicago
  • APA

"coyote." The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English. 2009. Encyclopedia.com. 26 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

"coyote." The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English. 2009. Encyclopedia.com. (May 26, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O999-coyote.html

"coyote." The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English. 2009. Retrieved May 26, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O999-coyote.html

Learn more about citation styles

coyote

World Encyclopedia | 2005 | Copyright

coyote Wild dog originally native to w North America. Coyotes have moved into many e areas of the USA formerly inhabited by wolves. Usually greyish-brown, they have pointed muzzles, big ears, and bushy tails. Length: 90cm (35in); weight: c.12kg (26lb). Species Canis latrans.
Show all research tools

Cite this article
Pick a style below, and copy the text for your bibliography.

  • MLA
  • Chicago
  • APA

"coyote." World Encyclopedia. 2005. Encyclopedia.com. 26 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

"coyote." World Encyclopedia. 2005. Encyclopedia.com. (May 26, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O142-coyote.html

"coyote." World Encyclopedia. 2005. Retrieved May 26, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O142-coyote.html

Learn more about citation styles

coyote

The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology | 1996 | | Copyright

coyote prairie wolf of n. America. XIX. — Mex. Sp. — Nahuatl coyotl.
Show all research tools

Cite this article
Pick a style below, and copy the text for your bibliography.

  • MLA
  • Chicago
  • APA

T. F. HOAD. "coyote." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Encyclopedia.com. 26 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

T. F. HOAD. "coyote." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Encyclopedia.com. (May 26, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O27-coyote.html

T. F. HOAD. "coyote." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Retrieved May 26, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O27-coyote.html

Learn more about citation styles

coyote

A Dictionary of Zoology | 1999 | | Copyright

coyote (Canis latrans) See CANIDAE.
Show all research tools

Cite this article
Pick a style below, and copy the text for your bibliography.

  • MLA
  • Chicago
  • APA

MICHAEL ALLABY. "coyote." A Dictionary of Zoology. 1999. Encyclopedia.com. 26 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

MICHAEL ALLABY. "coyote." A Dictionary of Zoology. 1999. Encyclopedia.com. (May 26, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O8-coyote.html

MICHAEL ALLABY. "coyote." A Dictionary of Zoology. 1999. Retrieved May 26, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O8-coyote.html

Learn more about citation styles

coyote

Oxford Dictionary of Rhymes | 2007 | Copyright

coyote •almighty, Aphrodite, Blighty, flighty, mighty, nightie, whitey •ninety • feisty •dotty, grotty, hottie, knotty, Lanzarote, Lottie, Pavarotti, potty, Scottie, snotty, spotty, totty, yachtie, zloty •lofty, softie •Solti • novelty •Brontë, démenti, Monte, Monty, Visconti •frosty •forty, haughty, naughty, pianoforte, rorty, shorty, sortie, sporty, UB40, warty •balti, faulty, salty •flaunty, jaunty •doughty, outie, pouty, snouty •bounty, county, Mountie •frowsty • viscounty •Capote, coatee, coyote, dhoti, floaty, goaty, oaty, peyote, roti, throaty •jolty •postie, toastie, toasty •hoity-toity • pointy •agouti, beauty, booty, cootie, cutie, Djibouti, duty, fluty, fruity, rooty, snooty, tutti-frutti

Show all research tools

Cite this article
Pick a style below, and copy the text for your bibliography.

  • MLA
  • Chicago
  • APA

"coyote." Oxford Dictionary of Rhymes. 2007. Encyclopedia.com. 26 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

"coyote." Oxford Dictionary of Rhymes. 2007. Encyclopedia.com. (May 26, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O233-coyote.html

"coyote." Oxford Dictionary of Rhymes. 2007. Retrieved May 26, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O233-coyote.html

Learn more about citation styles

Free newspaper and magazine articles

Coyote courtship Mating season brings coyotes closer to humans; here's how...
Newspaper article from: Daily Herald (Arlington Heights, IL); 1/31/2011
Coyotes make life tough for sheep farmers.(Local)
Newspaper article from: The Virginian-Pilot (Norfolk, VA); 1/5/2009
Coyotes love suburbs, but feeling isn't mutual; Locally and across the...
Newspaper article from: Star Tribune (Minneapolis, MN); 12/27/2006

Facts and information from other sites

coyote images
coyote. (Image by marya (emdot), CC)

Related topics