Coyotes. We have no feral dogs around here.
Ok, so whats your "27 years of proof" consist of?
Coyotes. We have no feral dogs around here.
Ok, so whats your "27 years of proof" consist of?
A substantial rise in the population of our wild quail, wild turkeys, as good or better population of the deer herd anywhere in the state of Georgia, both in quality and quantity. A reduction in the armadillo numbers. Even our fox squirrels have multiplied. And no predator control has been done. I`ve seen for myself that a healthy ecosystem consists of both predator and prey.
I and a few other folks, don`t consider the "coyote" that we have here an invasive. We believe that we are seeing a return of the nearly extinct red wolf that was here up until about 100 years ago. Whether it is or not, it is filling a niche as a predator to offset the return of the deer population. People worry so much about them wiping out the deer and everything else, but that`s not how Nature works. I see folks literally foaming at the mouth with their hatred of these critters. I`ll never understand that. Sure, their numbers should be controlled, just like anything else. But to want to wipe them off the face of the earth, no, that is wrong. Just as wrong s it would be to kill off any of our other critters. That`s not how Nature works, and it`s our job to fit into it.
Before you accuse me of anti-trapping or anti-hunting, don`t. I`m a proponent of both. My proof is observing these lands around where I live for all these years and seeing for myself. Not just on the weekends, but nearly every day, especially for the last 10 years.
Anybody want to hear a great podcast on coyote research click on the link below. Unless you're willing to trap year round, it may change your view of the presence of yotes on the landscape. It was an interview with Dr. Michael Chamberlain, who has conducted one of the most extensive coyote research studies to date. The GA DNR helped fund the study along with SC and TN if my memory serves me correctly. Pretty sure @CKillmaster is familiar with this study and references it from time to tome.
http://georgiaafield.com/episode30/
Nic, let me throw this into the equation. I have formed an opinion based on a theory of why the deer herd in your area is soooo much stronger than just a few counties south where I’m at.
I firmly believe that where you are there is a much more preserved and defined “rut” than down here. Here there is already a minuscule amount of breeding taking place and there will be a pile of it right on through January. Not in noticeable periods either. Just nonstop chasing and locking down. Fast forward 200 days and you have a fawn “dump”. A month later, your surviving fawns are safe from attack. Down here there is a fawn “trickle”. The coyotes have a several month long fawn buffet. We have basically the same ag, the same rx fire, same woods, the same browse, but you consistently have big deer numbers and we constantly have poor fawn recruitment. I’ve scratched my head for years, and that’s the best I can figure.
Here, I believe coyote removal timed appropriately can be a great management tool.
In south ga that is true because of all the uncared for yard dogs and dumpster mutts. Up here, our coyote numbers are truly astounding.
It’s not uncommon for trappers up here to kill 30 or more per 1000 acres in the winter. In the bear woods in the NE, I average seeing one every four hunts.
I was in a club near statesboro for years and never saw a single one while hunting. Never seen one where I hunted over near Cairo either.
My buddy in Madison cty averages killing about 30 per year on 2000 acres.
Anybody want to hear a great podcast on coyote research click on the link below. Unless you're willing to trap year round, it may change your view of the presence of yotes on the landscape. It was an interview with Dr. Michael Chamberlain, who has conducted one of the most extensive coyote research studies to date. The GA DNR helped fund the study along with SC and TN if my memory serves me correctly. Pretty sure @CKillmaster is familiar with this study and references it from time to tome.
http://georgiaafield.com/episode30/
A substantial rise in the population of our wild quail, wild turkeys, as good or better population of the deer herd anywhere in the state of Georgia, both in quality and quantity. A reduction in the armadillo numbers. Even our fox squirrels have multiplied. And no predator control has been done. I`ve seen for myself that a healthy ecosystem consists of both predator and prey.
I and a few other folks, don`t consider the "coyote" that we have here an invasive. We believe that we are seeing a return of the nearly extinct red wolf that was here up until about 100 years ago. Whether it is or not, it is filling a niche as a predator to offset the return of the deer population. People worry so much about them wiping out the deer and everything else, but that`s not how Nature works. I see folks literally foaming at the mouth with their hatred of these critters. I`ll never understand that. Sure, their numbers should be controlled, just like anything else. But to want to wipe them off the face of the earth, no, that is wrong. Just as wrong s it would be to kill off any of our other critters. That`s not how Nature works, and it`s our job to fit into it.
Before you accuse me of anti-trapping or anti-hunting, don`t. I`m a proponent of both. My proof is observing these lands around where I live for all these years and seeing for myself. Not just on the weekends, but nearly every day, especially for the last 10 years.
280, what county do you hunt and when/ what year roughly did they get a toehold where you are at?
so does the occasional. 40 S & WHeartworms, parvo, and distemper keep them in check.