One shrew was found in the stomach of a coyote from Washington, and two stomachs contained moles. A house cat was eaten by one Washington coyote, and another coyote had eaten a raccoon. Birds occurred in 13 per cent of the stomachs examined but formed only a small part by volume. Poultry formed one-fourth of this volume. Reptiles formed 0.08 per cent of the food eaten by coyotes and occurred in 3 per cent of the stomachs. A coyote from Washington had eaten a garter snake. No frogs were found in coyote stomachs. A coyote from Washington had eaten a salamander. Another had eaten a fish. Insects formed 1.08 per cent of the total food eaten by coyotes. Fruit formed 3.63 per cent. Carrion constituted 25.2 per cent of the total food eaten. It is extremely difficult to draw conclusions regarding the economic value of any species. Much depends on the outlook of the individual, his occupation, the locality where the animal occurs and local conditions there. Furthermore it is impossible to understand and fairly weigh all the factors involved. Coyotes destroy game and stock. They also eat carrion and destroy sick animals, thus preventing the spread of disease. They eat jack rabbits which are pests, and snowshoes and cottontails which are game. They eat mice, which are a pest in agricultural areas, a benefit on rangelands where they destroy weed seeds, and of neutral importance elsewhere. To analyze the economic value of the coyote, the economic importance of all animals on which it feeds must be considered and the "good" and "bad" balanced--a well-nigh impossible task. In any event, the coyote has been judged and found guilty. Coyotes are controlled by poison, trapping, and bounty. In spite of control measures the coyote is holding its own in numbers or increasing. Stimulated in part by the bounty, professional trappers take many coyotes each year in Washington. The pelts fluctuate in value from year to year but a large, prime skin usually brings from 5 to 10 dollars. [Illustration: FIG. 70. Distribution of the coyote in Washington. A. _Canis latrans lestes._ B. _Canis latrans incolatus._] =Canis latrans lestes= Merriam _Canis lestes_ Merriam, Proc. Biol. Soc. Washington, 11:25, March 15, 1897. _Canis latrans lestes_ Taylor and Shaw, Mamm. and Birds Mt. Rainier Nat. Park, p. 41, 1927. _Type._--Obtained in the Toyabe Mountains near Cloverdale, Nye County, Nevada, by V. Bailey on November 21, 1890; type in United States National Museum. _Racial characters._--Frontal region of skull only slightly concave.