Ben Schrader is one of our Blog rearders who grew up in Tazewell County Virginia in the 1950's when supposedly Coyotes did not exist in his state and a full decade before Virginia Department of Game or USDA acknowledged their existence in Virginia.......The intolerance and downright fear and loathing of Coyotes was rampant in this part of the USA in mid 20th century and is depicted in the attached 1953 article(bottom of this post in tiniest print)........With this as a framework, Ben's conducted a Fall 2014 Coyote Survey in Bedford County, Virginia of both hunters and non hunters to determine if the antipathy toward Coyotes continues to this day................ The survey(edited and partially revealed below) was open from October 7, 2014 to November 7, 2014, 205 responses were recorded. ..............45% of the respondents felt that Coyotes have a positive impact on the ecology of the region,,,,,,,,,,,,20% were undecided and only 34% were coyote haters.............Interestingly, The Virginia Appalachian Coyote Study, a three-year collaborative research project between the DGIF and Virginia Tech, is in progress and scheduled to complete in May".............. "Some insight as to what the study may reveal(and whether it supports some of the results of Ben's survey) have been quoted in a Virginia Wildlife article by some of those involved"............. Dr. Steffen, biologist with VDGIF states "Research at Virginia Tech showed no differences among seasons in the coyote consumption of deer"............ "Outside of fawning periods, what coyotes are most likely eating are remains from hunter kills and road kills"

COYOTE ATTITUDE  OPINION SURVEY REPORT

BY: Ben Shrader

March 26, 2015 Edited April 9, 2015

Introduction:  Much interest in coyotes has surfaced in recent years because coyotes have expanded their range to all of Virginia including a particular area of interest, Bedford, County, VA.   The coyote is a highly persecuted critter, harboring a widespread divergence of negative and positive images, while coyote's close cousins, red and gray wolves, have commanded more attention because they are endangered species.  Prompting a need for a survey was as follows:

1. Bedford Outdoor Sportsman Association was ask to co-sponsor a coyote lottery with Bedford County Agricultural Board.  Upon solicitation of BOSA members, who are mostly hunters, it was revealed that there was a deep division (18 in favor and 12 against) on the ethics of wildlife killing contests. 
2. Friends of Smith Mountain Lake State Park sought a speaker for their lecture series to present a program about coyotes. 
3. A PowerPoint presentation about coyotes was obtained from Michael L. Fies, Furbearer Project Leader for Virginia Department of Game & Inland Fisheries.  He stated that public perception of coyotes does not align with facts.

Purpose: This survey and paper is to poll the local public and hunters as to their opinions and attitudes about coyotes and to cite other studies and articles to supplement as follows:

1. Either quantify or dispel some coyote myths and opinions that do not align with facts.
2. To identify issues in which programs and educational seminars may benefit the public to better understand coyotes.
3. Quantify opinions of killing contests like the Bedford County Coyote Lottery and bounties to compare the opinion of hunters to the non-hunting public.    

Procedure:  A ten-question survey was composed and posted on a web site, "Survey Monkey".  The survey was distributed to member of Bedford Outdoor Sportsmen Association, the local chapter of Quality Deer Management, Central Virginia Master Naturalist, Facebook (72 friends), and an assortment of other individual acquaintances.  The survey was open from October 7, 2014 to November 7, 2014, 205 responses were recorded. 

Results:

COYOTE ATTITUDE ; OPINION SURVEY
1.  Are you a hunter and/or trapper?
Answer Options		Response Percent
Avid or part time hunter and/or trapper		51.7%
Non-hunter/trapper having favorable opinion of hunting & trapping		17.7%
Non-hunter/trapper, having neutral opinion of hunting and trapping		23.6%
Anti-hunter/trapper against hunting or trapping wild animals		6.9%

3.  Where do you reside? Answer Options Response Percent Response Count Bedford County, Virginia 46.1% 94 In Virginia other than Bedford County 41.2% 84 Outside of Virginia 12.7% 26

4.  What is your general opinion of coyotes?
Answer Options		Response Percent	Response Count
Favorable, believing they have a beneficial ecological purpose		45.2%	89
Neutral, no opinion, or do not know		20.3%	40
Negative, believing that they have no purpose of place among our wildlife		34.5%	68
			.

A study by Dr. John C. Kilgo at the U. S. Forest Service at the Savannah River Site in South Carolina reported 73% fawn predation by coyotes.[4] This study was presented at Southeast Deer Management conference in Roanoke, Virginia in 2009.  The study was promptly questioned and criticized by peers because of the likelihood of does abandoning their fawns after they were equipped with radio collars. The cries of the abandoned fawn were equivalent of sounding the dinner bell for coyotes to come eat. 

Several studies also indicate that coyote predation is higher in poor habitat where there is lack of under story for fawns to hide in.  This is a beneficial natural process that tends to balance prey numbers to match available habitat allowing over browsed habitat to recover by reducing deer numbers.[5] 

A literature survey posted by the Smithsonian Institution eMammal project concluded there is no evidence that coyotes are the factor that keeps deer populations from growing and actually evidence that some predation may keep the deer herd from overshooting the food supply.  [6]

In an article posted by Quality Deer Management Association, North Carolina researchers Marcus Lashley and Colter Chitwood reported many fawns that were eaten by coyotes in their research project were malnourished and were vocalizing (bleating). Coyotes responded to these calls for quick and easy meals. Presumably at least some of these fawns would have survived if their mothers were on a higher nutritional plane.  Coyotes are now part of the dynamic relationship between deer and the environment. Coyotes can affect deer herds positively or negatively.[7]

A several year study of coyotes by Mississippi State University, determined that coyotes depredate white-tailed deer fawns and will readily scavenge carcasses when available. Further, previous researchers have suggested that increasing occurrences of deer in coyote diets during fall-winter periods were likely coyotes scavenging deer carcasses, rather than directly taking deer. Given the temporal distribution of deer occurrence in coyote scat (peaked during summer and winter), the data supports contentions that much deer consumption during fall-winter is indeed carrion or fawns during summer. In fact, fawns may be specifically sought by coyotes rearing weaned, rapidly growing young. As the deer population was relatively stable on Tallahala Wildlife Management Area in central Mississippi, consistent use of deer by coyotes likely resulted from relatively consistent availability of fawns and carrion across years.[8]

Despite the studies from other areas there are no coyote specific studies that have been done in Virginia; however, The Virginia Appalachian Coyote Study, a three-year collaborative research project between the DGIF and Virginia Tech, is in progress and scheduled to complete in May.  Some insight as to what the study may reveal have been quoted in a Virginia Wildlife article by some of those involved.  Dr. Steffen, biologist with VDGIF states "Research at Virginia Tech showed no differences among seasons in the coyote consumption of deer. Outside of fawning periods, what coyotes are most likely eating are remains from hunter kills and road kills."  David Montague, graduate student participating in the study quotes " So far, we have only found wild turkey remains in less than two percent of the 1700 scat samples we have analyzed." Nelson Lafon, DGIF deer biologist, cites a 2012 study they did at Quantico in Virginia found a coyote fawn predation rate of 18%.[9] 

COYOTE RESOURCE LINKS

About coyotes in Virginia

http://www.dgif.virginia.gov/wildlife/information/?s=050125

Benefits, disease and rabies abatement

http://www.mfoa.net/animal_activism_events/activism/the_misunderstood_coyote.html

Rabies in Virginia data

http://www.vdh.state.va.us/epidemiology/DEE/Rabies/statistics.htm

Source Amnesia- http://www.nytimes.com/2008/06/29/opinion/29iht-edwang.1.14069662.html?_r=0

Wild coyotes in city of Chicago

http://www.npr.org/blogs/krulwich/2010/12/08/131876027/60-wild-coyotes-patrol-chicago-and-occasionally-stop-at-convenience-stores

Coyote habitat selection Mississippi State

http://www.fwrc.msstate.edu/predator/coyHR.asp

Myths & folklore

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coyote

Predator-pray relationships-1hour movie "Lords of Nature"

(link too long, research to watch)

Coyotes & Deer

VT joint cooperative study of coyotes

file:///F:/Hunt/Cougar/Coyote/Virginia%20Tech%20Research%20Magazine%20Summer%202014.htm

Smithsonian etc. Do coyotes cause deer population declines?

http://emammal.wordpress.com/2013/07/19/do-coyotes-cause-deer-declines/  

Mississippi State on coyote deer relationships

http://www.fwrc.msstate.edu/predator/coyDiet.asp

 John Kilgo South Carolina Coyotes on deer fawns

http://gameandgarden.com/sustainability/land/do-coyotes-affect-deer-populations/ 

Quality Deer Management Association on deer/coyote relationships

http://www.qdma.com/articles/kips-korner-coyote-impacts-trapping

The Misunderstood Coyote- http://www.mfoa.net/animal_activism_events/activism/the_misunderstood_coyote.html 

Sources

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[1] http://www.statisticbrain.com/hunting-statistics/

[2] http://www.predatordefense.org/docs/ecological_role_species.pdf

[3] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PagO3gmwmA0

[4] http://gameandgarden.com/sustainability/land/do-coyotes-affect-deer-populations/ 

[5]http://www.research.vt.edu/resmag/2014-summer/s2014-coyotes.html 

[6] https://emammal.wordpress.com/2013/07/19/do-coyotes-cause-deer-declines/

[7] http://www.qdma.com/articles/kips-korner-coyote-impacts-trapping

[8] http://www.fwrc.msstate.edu/predator/coyDiet.asp

[9] Bruce Ingram, "The Coyotes Are Coming" Virginia Wildlife November/December 2014, p. 14-17

SUNSET NEWS BLUEFIELD, WEST VIRGINIA, FEB 23, 1953

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