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Click on my itchy spot
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to
link
to the
Coyote Coexistence Guide for Newport
County! |
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Mission
PublicationsProjectsOpportunitiesSponsorThe Narragansett Bay Coyote StudyGuana IslandContact
Us!Home |
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THE NARRAGANSETT BAY COYOTE STUDY
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Bonnie and
Clyde! Alpha pair collared on Sachuest Point on March 11 2010!
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Any coyote news to
share? Check out the NBCS facebook page:
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Click above: Tom Horton,
environmental journalist, writes about NBCS
for Globe Magazine, May 30, 2010.
Click below for Tom
Horton's interview with Here and Now (PRI)
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Clyde is
barking at us as we approach. He knows us
well. It took us nine months to catch
him. Photo
by Katy Wolfe.
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Bonnie and
Clyde
Katie Kalafut - a doctoral
candidate at Brown University -
came up with our favorite names
for the pair caught and
collared in march. The two, who are rarely
apart, denned this spring at
Sachuest Point on the SE boot of
Aquidneck Island. They
defend a territory that
stretches from Sachuest, through Middletown, all the
way to the Glen in Portsmouth.
These animals are what NBCS would call "good
coyotes": they eat mostly
natural food and do not depend on human
hand-outs. Like wolves, they specialize on
deer in the winter, and meadow voles in summer.
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is Bonnie, a young female who is
the mate and constant companion of our Alpha
male, Clyde. She travels with him
and was in heat when we caught
her in March. They had
puppies in April. Photo Eli
Mitchell. |
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Don't have Google Earth?
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Double click on
the Google Earth logo (above left) and open the
folder. Then double click each kml file to
see GPS points of our coyotes in Google Earth.
By zooming in and clicking on points you can see
the coyote's name and when it was there.
Phase 1 coyotes were tracked during 2005-8.
Phase 2 coyotes are being collared right now. |
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| Coyote Neighbors:
Hourly GPS Locations of three
coyote packs
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Thanks to all who sent us suggestions for
names.
For the male some of the best were: Satchmo, Deerslayer, Sarge,
Giro, Malware (!), Orion, and Shadow.
For the female: Ladybug,
Cinnamon, Aurora, and Silvermist.
If you want to name our next coyote
send suggestions to us at
coyote@theconservationagency.org
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Movements during denning
By August several thousand hourly GPS
locations delineate the territory of the alpha
pair. Below we connected the hourly
"dots" from one week in April when
Bonnie (on the left) and Clyde (on the right)
were caring for a den of puppies. From the
lines created we can see that the pair patrolled
the territory together but frequently doubled
back to Sachuest Point - presumably to check on
the kids.
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Click on my nose to link to
for the latest scoop on our NBCS coyotes!
Scientist and Student Pieces welcome!
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Click here for
NBCS Safety Tips and Facts
Got coyote questions?
Sightings?
Observations?
You can call the Coyote Info Line at
(401) 213 – WOOF (9663).
The line is checked twice daily and a NBCS staff
member will return your call. Emergencies will be
referred to the local police.
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Dark and wild with no bite.
Pick it up at
Custom House, McQuades, Roch's, Grapes &
Gourmet, and Sweetberry
Farm!
Or you can
order online from Custom
House Coffee.
$1 per pound
to the NBCS!
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Recently, there has been much concern expressed in
both local and regional press about what appears
to be rapidly growing coyote populations. Some
have strong opinions about management practices
that should be implemented to control coyotes.
Before the NBCS began work in 2005, there was
almost no scientific information about 1) Rhode
Island coyotes or, 2) island populations of
coyotes. Without scientific data, neither local
legislators nor DEM have the tools needed to
make decisions about regional coyote management.
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Project Goals:
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We are seeking to answer several questions about
local coyote populations: 1) How many coyotes
are currently living on each island, 2) Are the
populations stable or growing, 3) What resources
are they using, 4) Do the coyote populations
pose a threat to human interests on the islands,
5) What are the best management strategies for
coyote populations?
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We will improve the quality of available public
information about Rhode Island's coyotes as well
as the quality of public outreach through valid
scientific sources. This will be accomplished
with the cooperation of the local school systems
and this Coyote web page on The Conservation
Agency's web site. The equipment required to
track the coyotes will allow us to post the
animals' location and movement in near real
time. Through extensive cooperation with local
school systems, data created by this study will
be immediately incorporated into the schools'
lesson plans. School children will be able,
through the Internet, to check the coyotes'
movements daily and learn about their behavior
and habits.
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In the final stage of the study we will create
Management Strategies for Coyotes on Conanicut
and Aquidneck Islands. Local legislators and DEM
will be able to use these recommendations to
make informed management decisions.
The Conservation Agency is coordinating all
scientific aspects of the project. Our
Educational Coordinator directs the educational
components tailoring them to interested local
schools and after school programs.
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The picture above is a snapshot of the movements of
nine Narragansett Bay Coyote Study (NBCS) coyote
packs through June 2007. Each pack has a
different color code. The coyote location points are
overlaid on RIGIS (RI Geographic Information System)
aerial orthophotos. Each one of these location
points has a time and date associated with it. Using
GIS software, students and scientists alike can
analyze how coyotes spend their time.
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Narragansett Bay Coyote Study Staff
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Numi Mitchell, Ph.D. – Lead Scientist and Project
Director
(401) 423-0866
numi@theconservationagency.org
Numi is a biologist specializing in the study of
resource and habitat use by wildlife. She usually
troubleshoots endangered species problems – this is
her first project in which management issues concern
a species that is too successful – an interesting
challenge.
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Richard Wolfe – Project Manager
(401) 932-7925
rich@theconservationagency.org
Rich Wolfe is in
charge of facilitating the implementation of the
NBCS Coyote Management and Coexistence Plan. He
continues to work remotely as head of two other
businesses but moved to Rhode Island two years ago
to pursue alpaca ranching with his wife and two
children. He has a keen interest in the topic of
coexistence with coyotes.
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Spencer Tripp – Professional Wildlife Trapper
(503) 669-5040
spencer@theconservationagency.org
Spencer is a professional trapper with over 50 years
experience with the behavior and habits of fur
bearers. He is the National Trappers Association
Director for the Rhode Island Trappers Association
acting as the liaison between the State and National
Agencies.
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Ralph Pratt, D.V.M. – Project Veterinarian
(401) 397-8887
apratt@wgah.necoxmail.com
Ralph took his degree at Tuft’s School of
Veterinary Medicine and has his own practice, the
West Greenwich Animal Hospital, which he runs with
his wife Amy Pratt, D.V.M. He started his graduate
career in wildlife ecology, moved on to veterinary
medicine, and has now come full circle as he became
Chief Veterinarian for the Narragansett Bay Coyote
Study.
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Lyn Malone - Director of Education for NBCS
(401) 245-4395
lynmalone@worldviewsgis.com
Lyn taught for many years in
Barrington but now has her own educational
consulting firm, WorldViews, specializing in GIS
curriculum development and training. She is an
ESRI-certified K-12 GIS instructor and is the senior
author of the extensive ESRI textbook
Mapping our World. Since 2005, Lyn has brought
her ideas, expertise in science education, and GIS
talents to the project. |
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Lynne Mallonee - Director of Humane Education at the
Potter League
(401)
846-0592
lynnem@potterleague.org
Lynne has for years brought humane
education to elementary and middle-school classrooms
on Aquidneck Island and Jamestown. In 2006 she
incorporated our coyote study findings in her
curriculum. She thrills kids with hands-on
learning, coyote facts and stories, and teaches them
how to safely coexist with and appreciate our newest
top predator. |
DONATIONS NEEDED TO SUPPORT NBCS
Narragansett Bay Coyote Fund
Larger
grants help to underwrite costs of the overall study
including the trapping and tagging of coyotes
from multiple packs; collection of information
such as population density, resource use, diet; analysis
of data and research for peer reviewed
technical articles; development of region-specific Best
Management Practices for coexisting with coyotes.
You
can support us at any level. Following are several
sponsorship opportunities available.
Coyote Collars
The Conservation Agency uses pecialized combination
GPS-radio collars,
designed for our study by
Habit Research of Victoria, B.C. Each morning the
collars transmit, by radio signal, the last 200 hourly
GPS locations of the collared study coyotes. The
real-world coordinates transmitted can be used for GIS
mapping and analysis. The radio signal component allows
scientists to directly approach the collared coyote and
observe accompanying members of the pack. The collars
are fitted with a programmable release mechanism. A year
to-the-day after collaring a catch bolt draws back and
the collar falls off the coyote. The radio signal allows
us to retrieve it, mount a new battery, and use it
again.
Name
a Coyote
We
are proud to admit that, when it comes to naming coyotes,
we do take bribes.
Celebrate
your famous or infamous friends by naming a coyote after
them.
You
can send your tax-deductible donations to: The Narragansett
Bay Coyote Study, The Conservation Agency, Branch Office,
67 Howland Avenue, Jamestown, RI 02835. For more
information, please contact
Numi
Mitchell, Lead Scientist, at
401-423-0866.
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