Wildlife Biology Question - Coyote Population

[LittleM]

Recently, with the advent of six-day and some coyote kills, I have read, on this and other sites and the coyote population is out of control, they are decimating the deer population, and that they should all be killed.  Or comments close to that effect.  So I started thinking:

 

1. Has the coyote population in NJ been quantified?
2. Scientifically speaking (no emotional responses, please), how many is too many?
3. Regarding any answer to Number 2 above, is that opinion or science-based fact?
4. Coyotes do prey on deer, is that a bad thing?
5. Should "all Coyotes be killed" because they are perceived as killing too many deer (as it seems by reading some of the aforementioned posts)?  Or are there other reasons?  Are those other reasons supported by science?
6. Do you think that the majority of deer hunters (or people who hunt deer) are primarily concerned about sheer numbers of deer available for THEM to kill and are pissed that the coyotes are cutting into that number or are they more concerned about the ecosystem as a whole?
7. I kill deer as well.  Should I be looking over my shoulder when afield?

FYI - I am neither for nor against killing of Coyotes.  I sometimes like to see things from a different point of view.  That can be a tough concept but once done, it becomes like riding a bike and perceptions on hunting, killing, and conservation begin to take on new meaning................. 

 

[redsquirrel]

1. Has the coyote population in NJ been quantified? Not that I know of.

2. Scientifically speaking (no emotional responses, please), how many is too many? Scientifically, too many is when they have eaten most of the available prey.  At this point the predators will die off and eventually the cycle will swing back to the prey.
3. Regarding any answer to Number 2 above, is that opinion or science-based fact? Science
4. Coyotes do prey on deer, is that a bad thing? No, that is nature.
5. Should "all Coyotes be killed" because they are perceived as killing too many deer (as it seems by reading some of the aforementioned posts)?  Or are there other reasons?  Are those other reasons supported by science? All coyotes should not be killed.
6. Do you think that the majority of deer hunters (or people who hunt deer) are primarily concerned about sheer numbers of deer available for THEM to kill and are pissed that the coyotes are cutting into that number or are they more concerned about the ecosystem as a whole? The majority of deer hunters are concerned the coyotes are cutting into their number.
7. I kill deer as well.  Should I be looking over my shoulder when afield? IMO we should all be looking over our shoulders during gun season in NJ   

[BHC]

Not only did get lucky on Monday and killed a coyote but this morning I saw from my stand another one but well out of range

[Gruntmaster]

I will go of my way to kill one of these deer killers.

Really big one, little out of range and caught me by surprise on Monday.

Checking cams revealed a lot of action in the last week, maybe if the cards are right, a shot may come sooner than later.

[Matty]

Last year, we trapped 194 STATEWIDE. I couldn't find the other total harvest, but in 2007-2008 it was 17 coyotes harvested. That number is usually very low if my memory serves.

 

Spread that out over the entire state and we aren't making much of a dent in a population of animals that give birth to an average of 5-7 pups each Spring. Those pups typically disperse in the Fall, eventually forming new breeding pairs or small packs. The alpha pair breed every year, so every year they are churning out new litters.

 

I know the State has "estimates" on the number, but i'm not sure I believe them, I can't recall what it was, but I remember thinking it was very low compared to what I have observed. I think it's like the bears, they fudge numbers, but I could be wrong.

 

Do I want all the coyotes dead? Absolutely not, they are an important part of the ecosystem. However, to make a dent in areas that are heavily populated with them, you have to shoot them every chance you can, because they are one of the most difficult animals to take here in NJ. That is evident by the always low harvest numbers. 

 

My main frustration with them in areas where they are what I would consider "over-populated" is how quickly they are on your archery kills. I have lost several well hit deer to coyotes in one particular place, a person was also bit by a coyote nearby recently. They are out of hand in this area. Just waiting the 20-30 minutes for a good hit, they are on it and tear it to pieces before I can ever get there. It's very frustrating to say the least.  My concern with impact on deer numbers isn't as great, I still see plenty of deer and they typically won't make much of an impact on healthy adult deer numbers unless winter is extremely severe, but they can devastate fawn crops, greatly reducing fawn recruitment each year. 

 

While they probably haven't surpassed the "habitat carrying capacity", I would say they've surpassed the "socially acceptable carrying capacity" in some areas. That's a number we need to concern our selves with as well. It's not just about how many animals the habitat can support, but how many can we live with?

[DBuck]

Coincidentally I had an encounter this morning with the biggest coyote I've ever seen,it was at LEAST 50 lbs. I was taking advantage of the new tracking snow to see how the deer travel and maybe try to track a buck. I see this guy on the other side of the hedgerow.he heads over coming right at me,gets about 8 yards away and sees me. We have a stare down for about 10-15 seconds,safety is off and my 870 pointing right at him. I said to him "don't do anything stupid". If he took 2 more steps towards me he was getting a face full of buckshot. He slowly backed off and ran. I didn't shoot him for 2 reasons. 1)It was too early and I didn't want to scare the deer. 2)Because I don't shoot them just because they are coyotes. I only shoot what I eat and I'm not about to eat one. I respect wildlife too much to just kill things. I have to be honest though,there was a turkey in the area and I told myself that if I see him stalking or attacking it I was going to shoot him..Ha

 

 

I will go of my way to kill one of these deer killers.

Really big one, little out of range and caught me by surprise on Monday.

Checking cams revealed a lot of action in the last week, maybe if the cards are right, a shot may come sooner than later.

I always laugh to myself when I see/hear people say this. We're deer killers too,should we be shot on sight also? We don't need to kill deer to survive,we kill deer because we like to hunt and eat venison.

[Rusty]

1. Has the coyote population in NJ been quantified?

In 2006 F&W estimated 3,000 coyotes and expanding/increasing their range and population size.

1. Scientifically speaking, how many is too many?

There is a biologic carrying capacity and a social carrying capacity.  They can’t exceed their biologic carrying capacity like deer because predators are controlled by the availability of their prey.  The social carrying capacity (how many coyotes people can tolerate) seems to have been reached.

1. Regarding any answer to Number 2 above, is that opinion or science-based fact?

My opinion is fact.(At least in my happy little world it is.)

1. Coyotes do prey on deer, is that a bad thing?

No, it’s a good thing.

1. Should "all Coyotes be killed" because they are perceived as killing too many deer?

Absolutely not.

1. Do you think that the majority of deer hunters are primarily concerned about sheer numbers of deer available for THEM?

A big emphatic yes.

 

     Or are they more concerned about the ecosystem as a whole?

 

Surely you jest.

 

1. I kill deer as well.  Should I be looking over my shoulder when afield?

If you are in zone 6, yes.

Edited December 12, 2014 by Rusty

[Rusty]

In my opinion, which in my opinion makes it scientific fact, the bears and the condition of our forests have had a bigger impact on the deer herd in northern NJ than the coyotes have.

 

We bought our house back in the late 80s.  We are in the middle of thousands of acres of state land.  Back in the 70s and 80s the land was logged regularly and there were very few bears.  Also, back then there were significantly more hunters, more coyotes, more deer, and grouse.  We saw/heard coyotes weekly, now I hardly ever see or hear them.

 

Over the past 20 years the bear population has increased, the forest has not been logged and the understory has disappeared, and the deer population has dropped.

Edited December 12, 2014 by Rusty

[BHC]

I hear the coyote while walking to my stand or sitting in my stand in the pre dawn darkness, and I hear many howeling. Now over the 34 yrs of hunting I can tell you for a fact that I saw here in NJ 7 times from my stand i spotted coyotes. Every year it seems I hear more, one year I saw them chasing deer all-day long, it was bow season in November.....Last year also I saw two big ones but well out of range with the bow. Kill them all.....NO WAY!!!! Take a few out, sure why not.  I saw another one yesterday and he was well out of range, but if given the chance I would of taken it. Coyotes kill for food and for fun (teaching their young), bears will kill of course, but they are lazy and will eat almost anything

[Bucksnbows]

I agree with Rusty.  Hunters always look to place blame on predators for seeing a lack of deer when it is the stated goal of the Division to reduce deer numbers significantly in most places by liberal hunting regs.  Coyotes, bears and all other predators reach equilibrium with their prey.  Our maturing forests are not great deer habitat, yet that is where most NJ hunters are forced to hunt them.  Instead, deer have moved into the 'burbs where all the food is.  Tasty lawns, shrubs and ornamental trees with no guns for the most part = high deer densities where they can't effectively be hunted.  

 

That said, I would shoot every yote I could legally shoot, but I typically never see them except on trail cams at night or tracks in the snow as I did in zone 6 yesterday.    

[LittleM]

Thanks to those who responded.  Some really conscientious thoughts here.  I appreciate that.  Looks like I am also glad I don't hunt Zone 6!

[BHC]

[robnj]

More coyote track then deer track in the pines yet I rarely see them or get pics. Just hope they stick to eatin them rabbits in the cedar swamps instead of deer.