Coyotes in New Jersey: The Garden State’s Newest Canine Resident

History of Coyotes in NJ

Genetics of the Eastern Coyote

The coyotes that have since invaded the east are one of 16 coyote subspecies found in North America. 

Genetic analysis shows that eastern coyotes are hybrids. They are a mixture between western coyotes, gray wolves, eastern wolves, and even domestic dogs! They’re a real hodgepodge of North American canines.

You may also like: 27 Wonderful Types Of Wolves (Facts, Photos & More)

The Coyotes of NJ

Now that we’ve covered the history of coyote expansion and their unique genetics, let’s take a closer look at eastern coyotes.

Physical Description

Eastern coyotes can have brown, gray, red, blonde, and even black coats. Sometimes they’re a mix of various colors.

Usually, coyotes’ fur changes color with the seasons. In summer, coyotes’ fur is shorter and lighter in color. In winter, when their coat is full, it will often be darker.

Coyotes have large, pointed ears, big yellow eyes, and long, bushy tales with black tips. Males are usually larger than females by about 4-5 lbs (1-2 kg).

Also, some eastern coyotes look like German Shepherds because they crossbred with dogs. This describes the “police dog” description in the newspaper accounts.

Habitat and Range

Coyotes reportedly live in every county in New Jersey. They are shy, elusive creatures, so it’s hard to get an exact population count. Some estimations number New Jersey coyotes in the thousands.

Eastern coyotes thrive in forests and fields. They prefer fringe habits, like a forest that borders an open field or meadow. People have also reported coyotes in urban environments.

Coyotes also live in the New Jersey Pine Barrens, a vast expanse of pine forests stretching over 1 million acres.

The Pine Barrens is a perfect place for coyotes to reside. The Pinelands is mostly undeveloped and remote, perfect for the shy coyote. In addition, there are vast stretches of shrublands surrounded by dense forests, which are ideal habitats for a coyote.

Also, the Pine Barrens supports a large population of deer, beaver, squirrels, raccoons, lemmings, and other small mammals, all of which make a perfect meal for coyotes.

Some believe that more coyotes are being introduced to the Pine Barrens to reduce the growing white-tail deer population. 

However, the NJDFW denies this claim. They state that, “Fish and Wildlife has never imported coyotes at any time in the past, although there is evidence that private citizens throughout the state have done so before 1950.”

Diet

Coyotes have a varied diet that mainly depends on what’s readily available. They are omnivores, meaning they eat both plant material and meat.

Eastern coyotes’ diet consists of white-tail deer, raccoons, rabbits, other small mammals, birds, insects, berries, and other plant material.

Coyotes that live in urban environments occasionally scavenge for trash and leftover food. 

However, researchers estimate that trash makes up no more than 1.3% of their diet. Coyotes will also steal fruits and veggies from gardens and hunt domestic pets or feral cats and dogs.

Also, coyotes don’t usually hunt adult white-tail deer. Typically, they kill fauns or weak adults or scavenge meat off roadkill. So, even if the NJDFW introduced more coyotes to control the deer population, the coyotes wouldn’t be very effective.

Lifecycle, Mating, and Reproduction

Coyotes live an average of 6-8 years in the wild, but some live much longer. In captivity, they can live up to 20 years.

Coyotes are monogamous, mating with a single partner for life. They do not group in large packs like wolves. Instead, they remain solitary or form a small family group consisting of a mated pair and their pups.

Coyotes mate in February and March. Females give birth in early spring and raise their pups in underground dens. 

During this time, male coyotes become very active and travel long distances in search of extra food for the female and newborns.

Coyote pups grow quickly and are full-grown at around nine months. They become sexually mature at ten months. Still, most won’t mate until they’re about two years old. By the time a coyote is nine months old, it will have learned to hunt on its own and gets exiled from its parent’s territory.

Sometimes, a young coyote will travel more than 100 miles (161 km) searching for unoccupied territory and mates.

Predators of Coyotes in New Jersey

The only predators that coyotes would have in New Jersey are black bears, wolves, and cougars. 

However, as previously mentioned, these animals have been pushed out of the region (although black bears are still seen occasionally), so they no longer pose a threat.

New Jersey coyotes have no natural predators. A bald eagle may prey on coyote pups if the pups are out in the open. But the biggest threat to coyotes is people, be it hunters, trappers, or car fatalities.

And speaking of hunters and trappers, let’s now look at New Jersey hunting regulations regarding coyotes.

You may also like: How Big Are Wolves? All About The Largest Living Canines

New Jersey Coyote Hunting Regulations

In 1980, coyotes in New Jersey were given furbearer status, meaning they could be hunted for their pelts. 

Nearly 20 years later, in 1998, New Jersey coyotes were given game status. This means they could be hunted or trapped for sport and trophies. 

Hunting poses no significant threat to the New Jersey coyote population. For example, in the 2018-2019 hunting season, only 144 coyotes were hunted and killed out of the 1,000 or more coyotes estimated to live in the state.

Coyote hunting season runs from September to November for bow hunting and November to March for firearms and bows. In all cases, hunting permits are required, and steel-jawed leg-hold traps are strictly forbidden.

You may also like: What Is Poaching And Why Is It Practiced?

Coyote and Human Relations

In almost all cases, coyotes will avoid humans at all costs. This is because they have excellent hearing and can detect a noisy person over a mile away. However, since more and more coyotes are expanding into urban areas of New Jersey, the chance of an encounter with one is more likely.

Despite the growing presence of coyotes, reports of coyote-caused troubles have remained low.

The biggest threat coyotes pose is to pets. Coyotes have been known to hunt domestic pets, either for food or because the coyote sees them as intruding on their territory. 

Coyote Management in NJ

Coyotes are adaptable, and this makes them hard to manage. 

For example, they can dig under or climb over most fences. Sound and odor repellents may work at driving coyotes away, but not for long. They can adapt to most repellents and won’t be bothered by them after a while.

Relocating coyotes also doesn’t work. Studies show that relocated adult coyotes have a slim chance of surviving in their new location, despite their adaptability. This is because coyotes are highly territorial.

Lethal force can sometimes be used to manage coyotes. However, lethal force is only allowed if a property owner or farmer experiences damage to property, crops, or livestock. 

If this is the case, the property owner can use a registered firearm to dispose of the coyote. They must report the killing to the NJDFW within 24 hours.

An interesting thing to note is that killing more coyotes to reduce their threat to livestock does the opposite of what you’d expect. An estimated 400,000 coyotes are killed on sight across the United States each year in an attempt to reduce coyote-caused livestock fatalities.

However, this mass-killing technique increases the number of coyotes. How? Because it messes up their social structure.

Coyotes naturally regulate their populations based on food availability and the privilege of dominant males to mate with the females. 

However, suppose hundreds of coyotes are killed. In that case, there’s more food to go around for the remaining ones and, thus, more resources available to support breeding and pup raising.

Also, if dominant males or females are killed off, coyotes of lesser status attempt to take power by breeding more and producing more offspring.

This counterintuitive method of killing coyotes en-masse is called the “hydra effect” by the National Parks Service: like the myth of the hydra, if you cut off one head, two more grow back. Or, in this case, kill one coyote, and even more are born.

No matter what, it seems coyotes are new permanent residents in New Jersey. Luckily, coyotes have not been a problem for most New Jersey residents.

You may also like: Apex Predator List: The Top 12 Predators At The Top Of The Food Chain

Effects of Coyotes on New Jersey Ecology

An overabundance of mesopredators in New Jersey can devastate populations of songbirds, shorebirds, small mammals, and even turtles, like the endangered diamondback terrapin.

Coyotes manage mesopredator populations either by hunting and killing mesopredators or because mesopredators avoid territories occupied by coyotes.

In any case, coyotes have rebalanced New Jersey’s ecology and, in that way, should be honored for helping to restore an ecosystem disrupted by human shortsightedness.

You may also like: 10 Keystone Species Examples And The Important Role They Play In Every Ecosystem

Coyotes in NJ FAQs

Most of these questions were answered in the above sections. But for convenience, we’ll answer the most common questions again here.

You may also like:

Want to learn more about animals living in other states? Check out the articles below!

Coyotes in Texas | Wolves in Idaho | Wolves in Yellowstone