Coyotes in Florida, and Looking as if Everywhere Else as Well:

Good morning to you all! We’d like to welcome you guys back to another Ridin’ Out the Recession in Miz Judi’s Kitchen! Thank you for stopping by this morning!

Well, I see Deb “busted my chops” pretty good yesterday in her article about me, and about men and their big mouths, or something to that effect. After reading that piece, I was beginning to wonder if maybe SHE was driving me to drink? In all honesty I’d have to say…no.

But, did I tell you guys about the time ole’ Deb….just kiddin’ around Deb! Plus…I know better!!

In reality, she’s been awful good to me, and has really been a great asset. She’s a great Mother, and Grandmother, everybody likes her, she’s a very positive thinker, and when she sees something that really needs to be done she, doesn’t hesitate to “get after it!” She’s in all honesty, a very loving and caring person, is a great wife, and I love her…bad talking me and all!

Come to think of it, when I was just telling you about her, shoot, I thought I was describing…me! LOL!

Her surgery, as I’m sure most of you know by now, will be next Wed. morning at 9:00 am. I know, and have been assured this is a fairly simple procedure anymore, but please, would you guys continue to pray for her.

I know that she appreciates it, and loves you all for doing so, and I know that you all are in hers, or ours, as well, but how about saying just a little one for me too. I have to tell you all, that throughout my life, until I met and was around Deb, I really never knew what the term, love, was all about. I do now, and she’s the one who enlightened me in this regard. In my life, she’s been truly special.

Well, that’s enough of that this morning, but let me just say this one other thing. She is just so positive in regards to what we’re dealing with, and to me, this is just so amazing. She truly is an inspiration to be around, and I’m telling you, we’re going to whip this thing, or as Deb likes to say, “Kick some butt!”

Her saying this may not mean to much to you…but it surely does to me, because she’s been kickin’ mine around for many, many years now, and I ‘m very aware of when she uses this term, she intends on doing so!

So once more, thank you all for being there for us, and we’re both so grateful to you guys for doing so!

Okay…let’s talk about something else here this morning!

Coyotes in Florida, and Looking as if Everywhere Else as Well:

I know when the word coyote was mentioned, the first thought that came to my mind was simply Texas, or out West in general. Today this is no longer the case. They have literally spread across our Country, and into Canada as well.

As a matter of fact they’re now found from Central America to the Arctic.

In the 1960’s coyotes had expanded their range across the Mississippi River into the Southeast, and by 1983 were known to inhabit 18 counties in Florida, with this mainly being in the panhandle, or the North-Western part of the State.

By 1990 they had spread through 48 counties, and now are found throughout the 67 counties in our State.

My brother, Shane was describing to me how the coyote will linger and laze about in the pastures or woodlands, around the deer. This act is simply letting the deer become accustomed to their presence. They show no signs of aggressiveness period…until the Doe drops the fawn. At this point the coyote moves in and takes the baby.

While talking to Ralph the trapper, down at the ranch last week, he informed me of another tactic the coyotes use around the cattle.

He was telling me the coyote, after the birth of a new calf, mainly is after the afterbirth. This meaning, though I’m sure there are documented cases of this happening, the coyote at that point wasn’t particularly a threat to the calf itself.

The problem, and hence the danger the calf is facing at that moment in time, is not from the predator, but the mama cow. You’ll here Ralph talking about this in one of the videos below.

As unlikely as this may sound, the reasoning behind it is undeniable. With the mama cow perceiving the coyote as a threat to her baby, she goes into her “protect mode.” This being her up, and standing directly over her newborn, and trying to fend the coyote off.

By her doing this, she’s twisting and turning, facing off the coyote from all directions. As you know the coyote, being the predator, is trying to find, and come in on the afterbirth from the best and safest angle of attack. With this being the case, the mama cow inadvertently steps on, or stomps the calf to death.

He also states in the video, of this very same thing happening to the calf during the mama cow trying to drive off the black vultures, or buzzards, after calving.

Deb and I have witnessed this, ourselves. What happens is, once again after calving, the afterbirth draws the buzzards. You all know the buzzard feeds on decaying carcasses of animals.

Deb and I were at the chicken farm ranch and happened to see a cow and newborn, but there were a whole wad of buzzard’s right there at them. We figured out that they were after the afterbirth, and possibly may have been trying to pick at the calf as well, but the mama cow we saw was trying to fight them off, but without a lot of success.

We always had a gun in the truck of some sort, so we just rode down beside the mama and baby and just fired a couple shots in the air, and the buzzards flew off. The mama and baby were fine, but we saw exactly what Ralph touched on in the video.

I also remember back several years ago, and we were building a new farm equipment barn at the chicken farm ranch. Every morning about daybreak, the man helping me build the barn and I, would ride the place. We’d be just taking a ride seeing the deer, or whatever, and enjoying the scenery.

I noticed something standing in the grade, and looked closer. I then saw what I was looking at was a coyote. Now I’m guessing this to be around 1993-1994, and told our neighbors across at the ranch next door, that I’d seen a coyote.

Those two just laughed and said, “You ain’t seen no dern coyote Dub, not here in Florida anyway. Shoot, we used to drink like that!”

I tried and tried to tell them that was exactly what I’d seen. Even that I’d lived in Texas a couple years, and had seen them out there on a few different occasions. They were like…yea, right!

It wasn’t a month or two later those guys called me, though serious this time, and explained that now they did indeed believe I’d seen a coyote. The reasoning…they had started eating some of their baby sheep. Vindication at last!!

Kunoichi commented yesterday on the coyote. Here’s what she had to say.

We’ve got coyotes out our way, too. Years ago, my BIL kept a trap line on their property and would sell the pelts for a bit of extra cash. Most of their neighbours did as well, or they allowed a old Native trapper set up lines on their land. A few years back, some animal rights people convinced their municipality (which is kinda like a county for you guys, I think) to ban trapping. Within a year, the coyote numbers skyrocketed. Where they used to see a few solitary animals that generally avoided the cattle in favour of deer, suddenly there were packs of them. Soon the deer were not enough and they started killing cattle. Nothing worse than finding their prey that got away from them, only to die from their injuries later. Some had to euthanize their injured cattle, but the laws don’t allow people to euthanize the suffering deer. They had to call the local RCMP to send someone over to take care of it. Eventually, the municipality overturned the ban on trapping but it was such a mess, my BIL never took on trapping himself after that. They struck a deal with the Native trapper that was working lines on their neighbours’ land, instead.

A lot of well meaning people get really upset about humans killing off predatory animals, but they forget that humans are part of the ecosystem as well and, quite frankly, us keeping predator numbers down through hunting and trapping is a lot kinder than letting their numbers get out of control. Not only because of the damage they can do to other wildlife (or even humans), but when their numbers get too unsustainable and starvation and disease starts kicking in.

Very, very valid points throughout, but the last really caught my attention. The environmentalists, tree huggers, etc., don’t seem to understand the TOTAL impact of such as the coyote as an example. Her last paragraph states clearly, at least to me, the reasoning to keep certain issues “in check.”
Ralph, the trapper even states in the video that we’ll never get rid of the coyote now. We only hope to control through numbers.

He also states the impact these, non-native predators, have on the native species here in our State. The Red and Gray Fox populations are declining. They eat coons, fawns, turkeys, owls, and many, many other critters. It’s now documented they’re digging up sea turtle eggs on our beaches.

So unless they are controlled, our native species numbers will continue to decrease. On top of this, the coyote population has increased so dramatically, that now they’re no longer just a rural problem, but an urban threat as well.

Cities are now putting out info on how to help curb this problem, for the residents sake. Trash left out is a draw, because it becomes a food source. It’s been documented of the coyote literally coming to the door of a home, if food is regularly present.

Newspapers across the Country have published reports of coyotes coming up to leashed dogs that the owners are walking, and harassing them. The coyote has come to realize that smaller dogs and cats are actually a pretty easy meal.

So, from not only a wildlife, but also from an urban living standpoint as well, the coyote, not just in Florida, but actually the entire U. S. and beyond, are now becoming a problem, that no longer can be just ignored, and in fact has to, and is being addressed.

I hope you guys enjoyed this today, as I find it very interesting. Please take a look at the two video’s below, and especially the video with Ralph, the trapper.

I hope this has found you guys in good health and spirits, and may God Bess you all!

Dub and Deb

I’m Just Enjoying the View

Coyotes and Their Impact on Florida Wildlife

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3 Responses to Coyotes in Florida, and Looking as if Everywhere Else as Well:

  1. Kunoichi says:

    First off, all the best to Deb for her sugery – I’ll be keeping her in my thoughts and prayers.

    As for the coyotes, I always thought they were native to Canada, so I had to go look it up. Sure enough, they are native to the long and short grass prairies, but have extended their range into the more heavily forested Eastern parts of the continent. I know there were sightings of them on the West Coast when we were living there, too.

    When I was a kid, I remember going out into the yard at night, hunting fireflies, and hearing the yipping of coyotes coming from the bushes. The first time I actually saw one, though, wasn’t until I was well into my 30′s. I still remember it quite well, standing at the side of the highway, just outside of town, watching the traffic go by! It took me a moment to realize what I was even looking at, since I’d only ever seen them in pictures until then. They are extremely adaptable creatures.

  2. Bonnie Hollingsworth says:

    The coyote population here in the southern Appalachians is growing by leaps and bounds. My nephew has property that borders the mighty French Broad River out in the Pisgah Forest area. He has lost livestock to coyotes. Right now, people are shooting them, just trying to thin out the population. Several people have also had pets killed by coyotes. Down the mountain in Tryon, a man was bitten by a rabid coyote. I may be off base here (according to the tree huggers) but I firmly believe the safety and well being of “We the People” should take priority over the coyotes. As I write, I have no idea of the hunting laws or lack of concerning this animal.

    We are also having more frequent reports of sightings of the mountain lion, whom the “powers that be” tell us do not exist in this area. I am one who knows that to be a total fallacy of fact! Twice we have seen one loping across the road in the glare of our headlights late at night, and once, in broad open daylight. Steve and I were deep into the woods at an old abandoned mine. We were actually sort of “stalked” by this big cat, and I was getting pretty nervous about it. Yes, Steve had his trusty friend strapped to his waist, but, unless immediate and close danger was there, of course chose not to shoot it. When we were on the floor of the open mine and I finally got a good look at it standing up on the brim near the edge of the woods, I told him we were getting the “H” OUT of there! We slowly walked away, down the trail, back to the car. It did follow for a while, but kept a safe distance. My thought is that it was a female and she was simply making sure that we didn’t get too close to her babies.

    Now, my niece had a mountain lion on her front porch, into the dog food bowls. She called the rangers station in Pisgah National Forest. They said none existed in this area, they were a protected species, she could not shoot it, and since there were none in this area, they would not even come out and set up a trap for it. HUH? Though several people on that mountain lost hunting dogs in the next few weeks, my niece never saw it again and it hasn’t been spotted for a while. The word spread, though, across the mountain, and I suspect that the big rogue cat is now peacefully sleeping in a grave on the mountainside somewhere. Would that be wrong? Not in my opinion! If one has livestock and/or little toddlers in harm’s way, they should be allowed to take whatever steps necessary to protect life and property. I do believe in protecting our wildlife, but I am in agreement with the former opinion that there has to be some common sense solutions for all concerned. Our local rangers added nothing in the way of common sense. My niece is now a little more peaceful when taking her toddlers out on the mountain to play. THAT is how it should be!

    I am not in agreement at all with the awesome and all-powerful EPA and most of the decisions and mandates they come up with. It seems anything and everything takes priority over the good of mankind and the citizens these days. The insanity has to stop and the sooner the better. There has been thousands of acres of farmlands shut down because of some strange little critter being found on them. Well, DUH! Remove the critter, build it a little natural habitat somewhere to preserve it for future generations to see and marvel at, and LET THE FARMERS FARM! We are facing food shortages while the EPA protects every living thing that breathes EXCEPT human beings and OUR future.

    And now, you see why I don’t comment often. I get wound up and don’t know when to SHUT up! ‘Nuff said! Have a great day, all!

  3. Bonnie Hollingsworth says:

    http://www2.tbo.com/news/news/2011/may/23/1/coyote-sightings-in-floridas-urban-areas-increase-ar-224143/?referer=None&shorturl=http://tbo.ly/mzObAp

    A political contact in Pinellas, FL sent me this link, and he had no idea we had been discussing coyotes in FL! I think I should introduce him to CFP!

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