Interview from Project Coyote

I asked Geri Vestein from Project Coyote these five questions.

1. Do you know if there a coyote population in Cumberland County?

 2. If there is a coyote population in Cumberland County, how large is it?  

 3. Where are coyotes most densely populated in New Jersey? 

 4. Some of my research indicates that the coyotes in New Jersey might be wolf hybrids. Can you shed any light on this issue?

 5. I’ve noticed on your website that Project Coyote promotes coexistence between coyotes and humans. What have your actions been like in New Jersey?

In her reply she said she felt that she might not be able to give me all the information I asked for, but her information seems to help answer most of my questions and is extremly useful. Here is the information she provided.

“I will tell you that you can count on the fact that coyotes are present throughout New Jersey, as they are throughout the US. They are filling empty niches left empty by the loss of the wolf.

 

When it comes to numbers and populations, there has been next to no research in most places in the country regarding coyotes populations; how they are affecting the ecosystems as a top predator; and how man’s relentless killing of the socially complex species is affecting not only them in a very negative way, but how it is affecting our relationship with them. Most research in this country has been directed to coyotes and predator control. However, the research of Dr. Gehrt in Chicago sheds a great deal of light on coyote populations, how they coexist with humans, and their ecology in an urban environment. Very good work.

 

I would be careful to use the word, “wolf hybrid” when it comes to coyotes. All coyotes in the East who possess wolf genes continue to be coyotes in behavior and appearance. Dr Kayes who has just completed research regarding coyote genetics in the East would confirm this as well.  When the first pioneering coyotes started heading East, they took two different routes: the northern through Canada, and the southern through Indiana and Ohio. Those that took the northern route met up with the Eastern Canadian wolves , who have suffered  a great deal of persecution, and as a result, their social lives are in Chaos.  That is why these wolves mated with the pioneeering coyotes.  Otherwise, these wolves would have killed these coyotes.  Then from there, the coyotes headed to Northern New England.  So many of our coyotes here in in Northern New England possess wolf genes.

 

I would expect that most of the coyotes in New Jersey are the descendents of those coyotes who took the southern route and did not mate with wolves.  However, wild carnivores disperse.  So some of the coyotes from the north may be dispersing into the mid- Atlantic states.  However, no research that I know of has been done on coyote genetics in New Jersey, so we really don’t know.

 

And finally, Project Coyote is very young network of Conservation biologists and Ecologists. Though very experienced scientists are a part of this network, it has only been in existence for over a year.  I myself  live and work in Maine, however there are many states where none of us are present. Nonetheless, many citizens of the United States contact us and want to assist us in teaching coexistence skills and championing laws to protect this species.  So we have just begun.

 

There is great need for our generation to learn coexistence skills when living with carnivores.  Either we learn these skills, or we continue to hand down to our children what our ancestors have done for the last 400 year…that is, kill. I will say as a biologist that our native wild dog deserves the protection by law from human abuse. When laws are not in place to protect our wildlife, as one scientist has stated,”The beastiality of man expresses itslf.”"

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Tags: coexistance, coyotes, interviews, New Jersey, Project Coyote, wolves

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