Mammals of the San Gabriel Mountains of CaliforniaVaughan, Terry A.
Science
Mammals of the San Gabriel Mountains of California
Vaughan, Terry A.
Mammals -- California, Southern
Many field examinations of coyote feces left the impression that
chickens and lagomorphs made up the bulk of the coyote's food on the
coastal slope. To check this a study of 39 sets of scats collected at
various localities on the coastal slope was made in the laboratory, the
results being shown in Table 10. Remains of one of the three species of
rabbits, cottontails, jack rabbits, or brush rabbits, occurred in 72 per
cent of the feces examined. Cottontails, it will be noted, were preyed
upon more heavily than any other wild species, remains of this form
being found in 33 per cent of the feces. The prevalence of chicken
remains in coyote feces does not imply that these animals were killed by
the coyotes. All of the chickens could have been found dead in the
refuse piles of the many chicken ranches. In addition, the chickens were
raised in wire cages above the ground where they were nearly
invulnerable to predation. That coyotes may at times kill deer in this
area was suggested by the finding of tracks in the sand in San Antonio
Wash which clearly indicated that a deer had been closely pursued by a
coyote. The tracks were lost in a stretch of brush so the outcome of the
chase could not be determined. Near the mouth of Lytle Creek Canyon, in
November, 1951, coyote feces contained mostly remains of grapes from
nearby vineyards. Also, above Cucamonga, coyotes were found to be
feeding heavily on grapes. This must be a rather unsuitable form of
nourishment for coyotes, for many of the grapes in the feces appeared
nearly unaltered despite their trip through the alimentary canal.
TABLE 10.--RESULTS OF EXAMINATIONS OF THIRTY-NINE SETS OF COYOTE FECES
FROM THE PACIFIC SLOPE OF THE SAN GABRIEL MOUNTAINS. FECES WERE
DEPOSITED IN AUTUMN AND WINTER (SEPTEMBER TO FEBRUARY).
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