Thumbs up for Don Mc Gowan, Senior Wildlife Biologist for the Georgia Dept of Ntl Resources who provides one of the more sane commentaries on the Coyotes inhabiting his home state: "it is not unusual to see coyotes in urban settings -- even in Atlanta -- and there's little cause for worry'. "There not really any cause for concern unless you have small pets -- cats, small dogs," said McGowan. "Other than that, there's really not much to be worried about. They tend not to bother people too much"....Unfortunately as we find almost everywhere in America, Coyotes can be hunted and trapped year round in Georgia without limit---When is Mr. McGowan going to go the next level of coexistance philosophy and push for a modest hunting and trapping season that does not include January-August--mating and pup rearing season in Georgia?.

Georgia DNR: Coyote sightings no cause for alarm

                 

alice queen -rockdalecitizen.com

CONYERS -- Several coyote sightings were reported in Rockdale County over the past several days, but a wildlife expert with the Georgia Department of Natural Resources said there isn't much residents can do about them and there's little reason to be concerned.

Rockdale County Sheriff's Office Investigator Michael Camp said a coyote sighting was reported at around 12:30 a.m. Saturday in Milstead. Two more coyotes were reportedly seen in the Irwin Bridge-Sigman Road area Monday morning. A Milstead woman called the Citizen to report that she had seen a coyote five times within a 45-minute period Friday night and then again on Saturday night.

Don McGowan, a senior wildlife biologist with the Wildlife Resources Division of the Georgia Department of Natural Resources, said it is not unusual to see coyotes in urban settings -- even in Atlanta -- and there's little cause for worry'. "There not really any cause for concern unless you have small pets -- cats, small dogs," said McGowan. "Other than that, there's really not much to be worried about. They tend not to bother people too much."

McGowan said coyotes have "family groups, and this time of year they are raising their young, so it could be that there is a den around where they were seen," he said.

The Milstead woman who reported seeing a coyote said Monday she might have confused it with a fox.McGowan said it can be a problem differentiating between the two. "Seeing them by themselves it might be difficult because you don't have anything to judge the scale by," he said, adding that coyotes are two to three times larger than foxes.

There are two types of foxes common to Georgia, McGowan said -- red and gray -- and both are known to be found around towns, as well.

Coyotes are not typically known to carry rabies, McGowan added.

"They certainly can get rabies because all mammals can get rabies," he said. "But it's not one of the common ones we see in Georgia. More often than not in Georgia when you are talking about rabies, you are talking about raccoons and bats, and sometimes foxes."

Coyotes are not a protected species in Georgia, McGowan said, so there is no regulated hunting season for them. However, shooting a coyote in an urban setting might run afoul of city and county ordinances, he said.

Anyone who wants to get rid of a nuisance coyote can call one of the professional trappers licensed by the DNR, McGowan said. A list of trappers is available on the DNR website at www.georgiawildlife.com or by calling 770-918-6416.