Abstract
Urban landscapes can present ecological challenges for wildlife species, yet many species survive, and even thrive, near dense human populations. Coyotes (Canis latrans), for example, have expanded their geographic range across North America and, as a result of their adaptability and behavioral flexibility, are now a common occupant of many urban areas in the United States. We investigated the spatial ecology of 27 coyotes fitted with Global Positioning System (GPS) telemetry collars radio-collared in the Cuyahoga Valley, Ohio. Our objectives were to quantify coyote space use, evaluate resource selection, and investigate coyote movement and activity patterns. To measure space use, we estimated home range (95%) and core area (50%) size of coyotes using the adaptive local convex hull (a-LoCoH) method. We found the mean (± SE) home range size of resident coyotes (4.7 ± 1.8 km2) was significantly smaller than ranges of transient coyotes (67.7 ± 89.6 km2). Similarly, mean (± SE) core area size of resident coyotes (0.9 ± 0.6 km2) was significantly smaller than core areas of transient coyotes (11.9 ± 16.7 km2). Home range and core area size of both resident and transient coyotes did not vary by sex, age, or season. For all coyotes, use of natural land cover was significantly greater than use of altered and developed land. When coyotes were using altered and developed land, GPS fixes were most common at night. Coyote movement patterns differed with respect to status, time period, and season; peaking during nighttime hours. A better understanding of coyote space use and movement within anthropogenic landscapes aids management of people, parks, and wildlife by providing the data necessary for research-based management decisions.
Highlights
Increasing urbanization continues to impact natural ecosystems, including remnant habitats within urban areas as well as habitats on the periphery of city and town boundaries [1]
Animal capture and handling protocols were approved by the approved by the University of Akron Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee (Approval #11-2B) and followed guidelines approved by the American Society of Mammalogists [27]
Seasonal data provided estimates of 82 home ranges and 81 core areas for both resident and transient coyote analyses, as one core area could not be effectively calculated in RStudio
Summary
Increasing urbanization continues to impact natural ecosystems, including remnant habitats within urban areas as well as habitats on the periphery of city and town boundaries [1]. Coyotes (Canis latrans) in North America are opportunistic carnivores that have adapted to the infringement of urbanization, while dwelling in urban landscapes that were once unoccupied [5] Many of these human-developed landscapes are comprised of city parks, wooded preserves, and water sources that coyotes can utilize as habitat [5,6,7,8]. Within these urbanized environments, examination of coyote diets have confirmed that coyotes consume both natural (e.g., deer, small mammals, and fruits) and anthropogenic foods (e.g., refuse, domestic pets, pet food, and cultivated plants) [9,10,11,12,13,14]. Granted much negative attention is placed on coyotes, their presence regulates the numbers of other mesopredators, allowing for an increase in bird diversity [17], and can maintain or increase rodent species richness and diversity[18]
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