Shooting coyotes

[Upland Idaho]

I was just asked this question again…thought I’d share the answer from last year on my Web site.

I was recently asked if while bird hunting I shoot coyotes. The question was asked in the context of removing predators of wild game birds to help the number of harvestable birds. I’ll give a short answer here in the forum but if there is an interest I’ll write a longer more formal article concerning this issue. You can look at my thesis for a deeper look into predation issues. I’ll write here about the general issue.

There are two facets to this answer, ethics and ecology. The first part is simple for me and it goes back to what my dad and Uncle Jerry taught me about hunting. If you aren’t going to eat it or use it then don’t shoot it. Keep in mind we are talking about this in the context of wild game birds and not opening the can of worms about a rancher catching a coyote killing a sheep or one attacking my dog. If one attacks my dog it's dead. But, because removing a coyote here and there has absolutely no beneficial affect on the local game bird population I see no reason to shoot them.

This brings us to predator prey relationships…how do things function out there. Having studied predator control I’ll tell you it has its uses but they are extremely limited and hunters in the field taking pot shots at the occasional coyote is not going to be effective. For predator control to be effective in increasing a game bird population certain things have to happen. It must be extensive, intensive, encompass all potential predators, and be long-term. None of these criteria are met by me shooting a coyote if it is in range. In fact, in all my time afield each bird season I have yet to see one close enough to kill it with a shotgun.

A more important fact lies in the ecology of our beloved wild game birds. Quality habitat must be available and if so, their populations are driven primarily by environmental conditions which do not include predation. I can’t count how many times this spring I have heard someone refer to whether their area had hard rains while chicks were young. This is a critical factor in bird numbers. Many other factors exist too, like winter kill and habitat quality. Southwest Idaho had a very mild winter allowing there to be more birds available for breeding.

Ok, for the caveat. Of course there are a few examples in everything I said above where the conditions are such that predators can be detrimental to wild game bird numbers in a way it would affect a hunter’s harvest. The extreme of these examples are introduced predators, such as domestic cats to island habitats. Predation of chukar around Brownlee Reservoir or blue grouse in Idaho’s vast Forest Service lands are not applicable examples.

Another point for me is I enjoy seeing predators while I’m in the field. It adds to my experience, enhancing it.

Here is an email comment I recieved to this topic and my response:

Comment: I thought delta waterfowl did a study were they removed some but not all predators and increased brood success by 80%?

I don't really see any point in killing anything without a purpose. But I have an extreme prejudice against non-natives like red fox and would do so in a heart beat. I have a cool paper on them.
my 2cents.

Response: As I said in my original post there are exceptions to every rule. Predator control concerning waterfowl is one of the most extensively studied areas when it comes to this issue. The fact is that in certain areas the removal of a certain predator, be it a racoon, fox, or opposum can have a dramatic affect on nesting or brood success. From the studies I have read these effects are temporary and do not always equate into an increase in harvestable birds. Most predator control can only be done in a very limited area because of cost and manpower and having a boost in nesting success on one Wildlife Refuge does little for the grand scheme of waterfowl numbers. The boom we experienced in waterfowl numbers and for that matter upland bird numbers in the midwest is largely due to CRP practices - simply an increase in quality habitat.

A general rule: If you have quality habitat and a healthy population of game birds, predators are not an issue. Predation becomes an issue when habitat alterations or degradation have already stressed the bird population. The proximate cause of a reduction in bird numbers generally comes from habitat quality reduction due first to human overpopulation that in turn causes habitat degradation in its many many forms.

[Jay A.]

my personal opinion is, if you aren't positive of a kill, all you are doing is training a cunning adversary to avoid being shot by the next guy. They are smart enough to survive anywhere, and there is no need to worry about making the coy dog extinct, at least not for another 100 years. As you said, and I agree, if you're not hunting them and you're not a rancher, let sleeping dogs lie.

[Summerleas]

Upland Idaho knows his stuff, well from what I have read. Habitat is key. If you missed that, Habitat is Key. One more time Habitat is Key. Our game numbers whether it be deer or quail all depend on proper habitat to survive.

[bigandrich44]

I shoot coyotes whenever I get a chance. You don't seem em often, so if you do, blast em. Texas Parks and Wildlife offers $5 for every set of ears you mail em. I got like 23 pairs?

[Upland Idaho]

Originally Posted by bigandrich44

I shoot coyotes whenever I get a chance. You don't seem em often, so if you do, blast em. Texas Parks and Wildlife offers $5 for every set of ears you mail em. I got like 23 pairs?

That's all well and good. My point wasn't about bounties. I was asked as a biologist if knocking off the occassional coyote while bird hunting helped the local game bird population...it doesn't. Just because it doesn't help the local bird population doesn't mean I'm saying you shouldn't hunt coyotes. The point is don't shoot 3 or 4 of them a year and say that it's the reason the bird population is doing so well.

I did my research on the Attwater Prairie Chicken in Texas. There are one **** of a lot of predators in Coastal Texas.

Have fun hunting and remember the key is habitat.

[billy]

i kinda like coyotes. but if its attacking a dog or livestock its dead.

[Bravo]

Originally Posted by billy

i kinda like coyotes. but if its attacking a dog or livestock its dead.

That's exactly how I feel.

[Upland Idaho]

Originally Posted by billy

i kinda like coyotes. but if its attacking a dog or livestock its dead.

Ditto...I wouldn't hesitate to shoot one that I caught attacking a dog or livestock...

[just_a_car]

Coyote will likely be the first animal I ever take hunting (as long as you don't count fishing/crabbing as "hunting"). It's a year-round season with no bag limit and the only restriction is you can't use hounds to hunt them except for a few months out of the year and there are a few counties in NE Washington that allow that year-round.

All you need to hunt them is a small-game license, which is also good for birds, raccoon, and other such animals. Now, you also have to take a hunter's education course to get your first license, but once you've taken it, you only need show that you've taken it once before and you can get a hunting license.

[Mooseman684]

My 2 cents...
Every time I kill a Grizzly Bear, I figure I have saved as many as 100 Moose and Caribou from being eaten. Wolves for example will eat the equivalent of about 40 Caribou EACH per year, hence 1000 Wolves will eat 40,000 Caribou a year, They have to in order to survive the Harsh winters here...So if you can calculate the number of birds a Coyote will eat over its Lifetime, that is the number saved every time you shoot one and Thin the Herd, so to speak.
Our Problem here is not the Habitat...There is an abundance of food for Moose and Caribou, the problem is thousands of Grizzlies eating them up and Wolves are helping them , so Our Meat Animals are in Danger with low populations, and as a Hunter, I can only hunt for 3 weeks for Moose Season, But Wolves can hunt year Round, and bears hunt From Spring to the beginning of Winter...
Rich

[JoeLee]

I consider the Wolf and Coyote my equal in this struggle of Life.If not a threat to me or mine,I'll just leave them alone.

[bigandrich44]

Heck, I think Bob Cats, Coons, badgers and the like kill more fowl than coyotes. if we shoot a ton of the above, then our upland population is pretty good.

[Upland Idaho]

Originally Posted by bigandrich44

Heck, I think Bob Cats, Coons, badgers and the like kill more fowl than coyotes. if we shoot a ton of the above, then our upland population is pretty good.

You are right that smaller predators like the fox and coon are more important for upland birds and that is because they are nest predators. With upland birds it's spring breeding success that drives the populations not predation...so if you want good numbers in the fall do your rain dancing before the eggs hatch and then give the chicks a few weeks of drier weather to grow feathers.

[Lng Rng]

While I think habitat is the most important part of any ecosystem, I have also been doing a lot of predator control on a section of land that I hunt, and you can really see the differnces. You wouldnt beleive the amount of vermin removed from just one full section of land. Hunting success has gone up noticeably since we started trapping and predator hunting. After good habitat, I think that predator control is also very important with nesting success.

[bigandrich44]

Idaho, I'm gonna have to disagree. When we have lots of small predators, there is hardly no quail or pheasant. When we have rainy years, there is no noticable difference from a normal year.

[ezearln]

Every animal will breed to the point of whatever sustainable habitat there is , the difficulty is deciding which predators to cull. Coyotes unfortunately will reproduce to the maximim sustainable habitat available. There for culling "Some" coyotes would seem prudent although I would fully expect culling raccoons, fox and possums as well. Predators will by nature fill whichever niche is available to them.

[Lng Rng]

You are very right, Ezearln. I am pretty certain that predators such as raccon, skunk, and the worst, opossom, do more damage than a coyote. However, keeping all predators at a sustainable level is still a good idea.

[Midas]

I shoot coyotes on the spot, I see them as a nuisance

[frozentorso]

I was kidnapped and held for ransom by a pack of coyotes when I was just a wee little baby. So I kills em everychance I get. Its personal.

[ArkansasHunter]

Idaho I understand what your saying and I enjoyed your story...A.H