Coyotes Come To Town

Out in the boonies where I live the coyotes are still doing quite well. We have a bit of an overpopulation problem with them. And they still howl quite a bit!
You're right that there isn't really any hunting pressure on them. As someone who HAS actively hunted coyotes on several occasions, let me tell you ... it ain't easy. There's a reason they are called "wiley". Those buggers are tough to get. Great senses of smell, and hearing. Pretty good sight, too. I've actually gotten more of them when deer hunting than I have when coyote hunting (of course I have spent a lot more hours actively hunting deer than coyotes, so law of probability may play into that as well). The difficulty in hunting coyotes keeps most people away from wanting to do it. But, most deer hunters will admit to popping the occasional coyote while waiting for the deer to come along.
The coyotes you are seeing that have moved into more urban areas are also likely suffering from what I like to call "City Squirrel Syndrome". I noticed a very long time ago that the squirrels who live in town are much more accustomed to humans and will pay them essentially no attention, not fearing them as predators. You can go to the park and feed them, they will come right up to your feet. By contrast, just a few miles away out in the county, you can't get within 50 feet of a squirrel. They will position themselves on the opposite side of tree trunks, out of view. They won't come to the ground as long as you are within eyesight, etc. My squirrel hunting outings would probably be a lot easier if the county squirrels were more like those city squirrels, I reckon.
Once coyotes develop "City Squirrel Syndrome", they can be a REALLY big problem. In fact, they can be downright dangerous. Not a good sign when they start showing up in suburbs eating out of trash cans. If you think it may be a problem in your area, you should definitely consider talking to the city council/local governing body about getting something done.

A big pack out here comes through on a rotating basis. They may be gone 3 weeks, back 4 or 5 days, gone for another week, back for a night or two. There are a bunch of them, when they sound off it is 360 degrees and spread out for miles. I love to listen to them yip and howl, but I have a real vendetta against them. I've known several good pets they've eaten over the years, and they pay for it if I see them. At the same time, I grudgingly respect their ability to survive in a hard old world.

Here's a fine old song pontificating and poetifying on coyotes and cowboys.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CwgRQEO8iKA

Cyotes seem to be everywhere these days.

Ah yes, the American song dogs. We have them in our area also. Love hearing them at night in the summer when we sleep with the windows open.

I kill em, kill em all. They attack pets, my neighbors rabbits and chickens. My Son made me a shooter and I can reach out and grab em.

Coyotes gotta eat. Using the neighbor's pets, rabbits and chickens as bait isn't a bad idea though if you want to kill 'em.

I see them quite often myself, here in Fort Worth.

I live on the outskirts of Topeka, KS, pop. 127,679: blocks away from soybean and wheat fields in my forty year old developed neighborhood.
A few weeks ago I walked Porter, (Not our naming: picked up in Woodward, OK and rescued from a kill shelter in Liberal, KS) down the street and a six point buck walked in front of us, into a neighbor's driveway, and then started click-clacking his way towards us.
My normally pathologically friendly dog - a three bite coyote canape - went rigid, stood his ground and we've called him P-mon ever since. (Sorry. Bradley. He'll never be a Catahoula but my Heinz 57 mutt has the heart of a damned lion.)
When we're walking, and the local fire station lights up, the coyotes start howling. Porter goes stiff and then joins along. it's got to be the song of his people.
Fnord

60 minutes had a story last week about cougars stranded in the woods, just outside L.A.. They won't cross the major highways to get back into the wilderness. They've been there so long now, they are breeding.

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My family lived in a suburb of LA that abutted the Angeles National Forest in 80's-90's. Regularly, mountain lion's would creep down from the hills to grab a pet. The big story when we moved to town from NYC was a a cougar snuck into a neighbors yard and grabbed an unattended child playing on his swing set. Afterward, a culling was instituted. Still, we would see them regularly along roads sides...you can't hide those eyes from a highbeam at night. They are amazingly fast sprinters.
I'm back east again but living between a lake and a nature preserve and holy cow...the coyotes! Most nights, it's just me, my pipe and a hunting pack...somewhere...they must know me by scent now. I will say, they do seem to get really rowdy on nights I'm smoking Plum Cake.... 8O

Being Cajun and not expressing myself fully I want to say they give us trouble after the cane is cut. During the growing season they make nests in the heavy foliage and I hear them nightly having a concert. After cutting the cane they start mauradering and giving trouble. I usually spot the head guy, takes a while as they are very good comoflougers, I shoot him, let him lay there as a warning to the others and they move on. I really hate killing them as they are only doing their thing. Every animal has his place and I don't like the killing. Didn't want you all to think I had no feelings for them.

I've never had an issue with them getting my chickens or rabbits, but I sure wish they would make a dent on the feral cat population here. We got cats out our ears.
But, yeh, when they cut through my property with about twelve of them at a time, you know they are not tame animals. Wild, pure living breathing wild. They don't ever run a straight line. They don't look at you; they pierce you with their eyes. It's not like deer or foxes. You can feel them.
I've never been scared of them, or felt intimidated. Just awed. They follow the river, which runs through my property. My dogs have just always raised their heads, looked at them, and went back to sleep. It would be like barking at the leaves or the rain.
Now, if a deer walks through the property, the dogs go ballistic.

I kill em, kill em all.

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I will agree 100 percent. Very big up here and dangerous. A girl was attacked and killed in Cape Breton a few years back. They wouldn't back down when some guys tried to help and even when a Mountie arrived didn't leave until he let loose with the 12 gauge. The DNA tests showed they have bred with Timber Wolves. Very interesting story that they traced back to Algonquin Park in Ontario.
Here's my cure;

Coyotes are a real nuisance here in my area. I will eliminate them with an arrow or high speed lead injection every chance I get. They are bad enough in my area that we are allowed to hunt them year round with a small game license. :evil:

A few yrs ago after consulting with the Conservation Dept I buried a couple of blue plastic barrels for the fox skulks around my farm & the farms in the area to use as dens. I haven't approached the dens since but I have a good view with binoculars from about 45-50 yards away. After I piled rocks up in the entrance one of the barrels has been occupied ever since the second yr after I put them out. I really enjoy hearing the pups or kits of a night & in the morning as they grow. I cringe every time I see one dead out on the highway wondering if it is one of "mine" or not.
The coyotes around used to live on a neighboring farm but my neighbor burned the big tree root wad & downed tree they were using as their den. When I see one I shoot to scare them & keep them at a distance but never shoot to kill. They have as much right to life on this land as I do.
Never lost a calf, never lost a chicken or a quail to either one.

I kill em, kill em all.

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Good man. Whenever I spot one, I never let it outta my sight without throwing some lead in it's general direction. I don't have a good "reach and and grab em" coyote gun like that fine lookin machine of yours, so I throw 30-30, 30-06, or .35 rounds at em with one of my deer rifles (whichever is handy at the moment). If they are further out, I'll throw .22LR rounds at em hoping to do enough damage they wander off and die. Heck, I've even been known to sling some 230 grain .45 slugs at em from my daily carry 1911 if I see one and don't have time to get to a rifle. Sometimes I don't know if I hit them or not, but at least I'm giving them reason to stay away from my place. I'm sure I've put at least several dozen down, if not in the hundreds. As I said before, I've also actively hunted them, but it's a tough job and time consuming. They are clever. I get most of my coyote kills as "targets of opportunity".

They are bad enough in my area that we are allowed to hunt them year round with a small game license.

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Same here. Open season year round, no tags or telecheck required. All you need is a current hunting license, and I have personally heard our locally game warden say "none of my officers is ever going to cite ANYONE for killing coyotes without a valid hunting license. If you see them, kill them."

Using the neighbor's pets, rabbits and chickens as bait isn't a bad idea though if you want to kill 'em.

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During squirrel or rabbit season, I have often used the remains of the cleaned squirrels/rabbits to make a "bait pile". About a day of soaking the bait in the warm springtime sun will get those 'yotes attention and bring them in pretty well.

I really hate killing them as they are only doing their thing. Every animal has his place and I don't like the killing. Didn't want you all to think I had no feelings for them.

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I understand what you mean. They are just another of mother nature's glorious creatures. However, if the population gets out of control (like it is here) because food is abundant and predators are non-existent, it's bad for the 'yotes and for people/pets. Population management is critical.

Lonestar,
Thanks for the link to that song. I know now that you get it too.