Coyotes

In body form and size, the coyote (Canis latrans) resembles a small collie dog, with erect pointed ears, slender muzzle, and a bushy tail. Coyotes are predominantly brownish gray in color with a light gray to cream-colored belly. Color varies greatly, however, from nearly black to red or nearly white in some individuals and local populations. Most have dark or black guard hairs over their back and tail. Coyote-dog and coyote-wolf hybrids exist in some areas and may vary greatly from typical coyotes in size, color, and appearance. Coyotes often include many items in their diet. Rabbits top the list of their dietary components. Carrion, rodents, ungulates (usually fawns), insects (such as grasshoppers), as well as livestock and poultry, are also consumed. Coyotes readily eat fruits such as watermelons, berries, and other vegetative matter when they are available. In some areas coyotes feed on human refuse at dump sites and take pets (cats and small dogs). Coyotes are opportunistic and generally take prey that is the easiest to secure. Among larger wild animals, coyotes tend to kill young, inexperienced animals, as well as old, sick, or weakened individuals. With domestic animals, coyotes are capable of catching and killing healthy, young, and in some instances, adult prey. Coyote predation on livestock is generally more severe during early spring and summer than in winter. Coyote predation also may increase during fall when young coyotes disperse from their home ranges and establish new territories

Donkeys for Predation Control

Donkeys (Equus assinus) are described and their availability discussed. Key points which appear important in successfully using a donkey for reducing predation on livestock are presented

Urban Coyotes: Some Summary Thoughts

The Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, Wildlife Services program provides services on request to help alleviate damage by wildlife to agriculture, natural resources and human health and safety. Such services may also involve dealing with coyotes (Canis latrans) in urban settings. Resolving problems with urban coyotes requires a mix of suitable methods but perhaps more importantly, an understanding of complex social and cultural issues surrounding people and wildlife

The Use of Eurasian Dogs to Protect Sheep from Predators in North America: A Summary of Research at the U.S. Sheep Experiment Station

The authors thank the sheep producers who cooperated in the study. R. Harman, R. VanHorn, S. Ecret, K. Havelock, J. Geiser, W. Bowers, G. Pendleton, D. Johnson, and C. Schwartz helped with the care and evaluation of the dogs. In the search for methods to reduce coyote (Canis latrans) predation on sheep, livestock guarding dogs have been found to be a relatively successful technique in a variety of conditions including open rangeland (Green and Woodruff in press) and fenced pastures (Linhart et al. 1979, McGrew and Bakesley 1982, Pfeifer and Goos 1982, Green et al. In Press a). Eurasian dogs (Coppinger and Coppinger 1980b) and mongrel dogs (Black 1981) reared from puppyhood with sheep become attentive to the flock, generally remain with sheep, and subsequently help to reduce predation (Coppinger et al. 1983)

DO LIVESTOCK GUARDING DOGS LOSE THEIR EFFECTIVENESS OVER TIME?

Information about the effectiveness of livestock guarding dogs for reducing coyote predation on sheep was gathered from livestock producers in the Animal Damage Control Livestock Guarding Dog Program and in Colorado. Eighty-two percent of the producers contacted reported that the performance of their dogs remained the same or improved during 1993 compared with previous years. Eighteen percent of the producers reported a decrease in their dog\u27s effectiveness, but most still felt the dogs were a benefit to their livestock operation. Most producers who noted a decrease in effectiveness attributed it to an apparent increase in the number of coyotes and/or an increase in their predatory activities on livestock

Acoustic streaming and thermal instability of flow generated by ultrasound in a cylindrical container

A vertically orientated ultrasonic transducer contained within a closed cylindrical Pyrex tube was used to study the acoustic streaming flow within a cylindrical container. A particle-image velocimetry (PIV) system incorporating fluorescent 1.5 μm seeding particles suspended in a mixture of diethyl-phthalate and ethanol, whose optical index was matched to that of Pyrex, was used to allow for undistorted PIV imaging within the Pyrex tube. Temperature on the end-wall surface and acoustic pressure within the cylinder were measured for different end-wall materials. Variables considered included acoustic absorption and reflection coefficients, ultrasound intensity, container height, and thermal properties of the end-wall material. It was observed that a quasi-steady flow field driven by acoustic streaming is rapidly established within the container, which is typically dominated by a stationary vortex ring with downward flow along the ring axis. After sufficient time this quasi-stationary flow exhibits a thermal instability causing it to transform into a secondary flow state. Different types of secondary flow states were observed, including cases where the flow along the cylinder axis is oriented upward toward the ultrasound transducer and cases where the axial flow changes directions along the cylinder axis

SALMON POISONING DISEASE: RESEARCH ON A POTENTIAL METHOD OF LETHAL CONTROL FOR COYOTES

Salmon poisoning disease (SPD) was tested as a potential method of lethal control for coyotes (Canis latrans). Fresh fish containing the agents for SPD was fed to 72 captive adult coyotes. Coho (Oncorhunchus kisutch) and steel head salmon (Salmo gairdneri) from Oregon hatcheries were the principal species of fish used. Coyotes that ate the fish developed observable signs of SPD in a mean of 8 days. The overall rate of mortality was 50%, and death occurred in a mean of 20 days from consuming fish. Coyotes that died from SPD lost a mean of 32% of their body weight during the course of the disease. Other coyotes were fed preserved fish samples or administered oral or intraperitoneal treatments of lymph node matter from coyotes that died from SPD. In light of the relatively low rate of mortality observed, feeding coyotes fish to cause death from SPD appears to be a method of questionable value for controlling numbers of adult coyotes in areas of livestock production unless fish with a highly virulent strain of the SPD agent can be obtained

I-Brane Inflow and Anomalous Couplings on D-Branes

We show that the anomalous couplings of $D$-brane gauge and gravitational fields to Ramond-Ramond tensor potentials can be deduced by a simple anomaly inflow argument applied to intersecting $D$-branes and use this to determine the eight-form gravitational coupling.Comment: 8 pages, harvmac, no figure