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“Co-existing with Coyotes in Residential Areas” was the title of a presentation sponsored by the Dare County Library in Hatteras village.

Chase Luker with the state’s Wildlife Resources Commission prepared a slide show for the 26 people who showed up at the library and the 11 people who joined online.

Coyotes arrived in North Carolina in 1983 to 1985 and in 2009 on Hatteras Island.

Coyotes are typically 25 to 40 pounds with pelts in a variety of colors. They are classified carnivore, but the mammal feeds on many food sources including fruit, berries, rodents, rabbits, birds, snakes, cats, small dogs and insects. Coyotes scavenge on roadkill, garbage and pet food left outdoors. They are “nest raiders.” They are opportunistic.

Coyotes are monogamous. Female coyotes adjust litter size depending on the availability of resources in their territory. If there is an abundance of food and/or little competition from other coyotes in the area, they will have a larger litter of pups, and more pups will survive to independence.

“When populations are reduced, the remaining coyotes respond by breeding at a younger age and producing larger litter sizes with high pup survivorship, making their populations resilient,” states the species description on the Wildlife Commission’s website. Luker said coyotes are “self-regulating.”

One woman at the meeting was adamant. She wanted to kill a coyote in her yard. After 18 years of the same routine, she had let her Chihuahua outside before going to bed. Her Chihuahua was grabbed by a coyote.

To avoid her experience, leash pets on walks.

For chickens, roof the coop. Install a fence at least six feet tall. Luker suggested a platform on top, so the coyote cannot jump the fence.

If threatened, “haze” the coyote. Yell. Honk a horn until the coyote moves. Invest in bear spray or an air horn.

Dare County is in a special five-county area regarding the hunting of coyotes.

Wildlife Resources Commission issues a coyote hunting permit for the taking of coyotes on private lands in the counties of Beaufort, Dare, Hyde, Tyrrell and Washington.

A Wildlife Resources Commission website states: “In the those counties, coyote hunting on public lands is prohibited, except coyotes may be taken on state-owned game lands by the holder of this permit and a NCWRC-issued permit or license for a specific permit hunt opportunity for coyotes as authorized by G.S. 113-264(d).”

“These permits do not authorize access to any property, public or private; and are non-transferable,” states the website.

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