Home Range and Habitat Use of Coyotes in Southeastern Colorado

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Abstract
We tracked 72 radio-collared coyotes (Canis latrans) for 13 consecutive biological seasons spanning 4 years. Coyotes displayed 2 behavior modes based on home-range characteristics: resident and transient. Resident and transient coyotes comprised 78 and 22% of the population, respectively. The mean annual home-range size was 11.3 km2 (range = 2.8-32.0 km2) and 106.5 km2 (range = 60.9-185.3 km2) for resident and transient coyotes, respectively. Yearlings and very old coyotes (> 8 yr) accounted for 68% of the transient cohort. Resident annual home ranges in canyon, hill, pinyon (Pinus edulis)-juniper (Juniperus monosperma)-prairie, and prairie habitats averaged 5.5, 6.6, 11.1, and 16.5 km2, respectively. Coyotes preferred pinyon-juniper woodlands and shrub-grasslands but used open grasslands habitat less than expected. Regression analysis showed that 65% of the variation in resident home ranges could be explained by the amount of available pinyon-juniper cover. Coyotes with access to little or no pinyon-juniper cover used shrub-grasslands. Similarily, 47% of the variation of home ranges for coyotes inhabiting the prairie could be explained by the amount of available shrub-grassland habitat within an animal''s home range.

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