When are coyote reports occurring?
Seasonal Patterns
Over the course of a year the number of average yearly coyote sightings is highly variable on a monthly basis (Figure 12). The total number of sightings (X2=488.47, df=2, p<0.001) and encounters (X2=53.09, df=6, p<0.001) are significantly different across seasons. Pairwise comparisons reveal a significant decrease in the number of sightings during the pup rearing season, with only 19% of sightings occurring in this season compared to 40% and 41% in the breeding and dispersal seasons, respectively (Table 4). The number of sightings does not differ significantly between breeding and dispersal seasons. The number of encounters varies significantly across all seasons, with 33% occurring in the breeding season, 26% in the pup rearing season and 42% in the dispersal season (Table 4). The greater decrease in the percentage of pup rearing sightings (19%) compared to encounters (26%) suggests that while coyotes are more secretive while denning close encounters may remain prevalent. This could be due to defensive behaviour. Our findings do not align with similar work that has identified higher human-coyote conflict during the pup-rearing season (Alexander and Lukasik 2011). Diel Patterns The number of reports per year is highly variable in each of the six-hour time classes (Figure 13). There are overall significant differences in the total number of sightings (X2=952.12, df=3, p<0.001) and encounters (X2=299.29, df=3, p<0.001) across time periods. The number of sightings during each six hour interval is significantly different except for between 6:00-12:00 and 18:00-24:00 (Table 5). This suggests that the frequency of coyote sightings by humans during morning and evening is not significantly different, which does not align with evidence that urban coyotes are most active during nighttime (Grubbs and Krausman 2009). In contrast, the number of encounters varies significantly during each time period with the exception of comparing daytime hours of morning (6:00-12:00) and afternoon (12:00-18:00) (Table 5). Based on this study, it appears that the likelihood of encountering a coyote during daytime hours does not change from morning to afternoon. Encounters are 38% and 60% more prevalent during the evening (18:00-24:00) than in the morning (6:00-12:00) and the afternoon (12:00-18:00) respectively. The rise in the number of encounters during evening hours supports the widely reported trend that urban coyotes are most active during nighttime (Grubbs and Krausman, 2009; Poessel et al., 2016, Weckel et al. 2010). However, the lack of a higher number of reports between 0:00 and 6:00 suggests that low human activity during this time period could limit the potential for encounters although it is important to recall that this time period is also underrepresented because of reporting bias. |
Figure 12. The average number of monthly coyote sightings and encounters per year, in the breeding, pup rearing and dispersal seasons. Seasons are based on the biologically relevant coyote seasons used by Poessel et al. (2013) and others. Bars represent the standard deviation between years.
Figure 13. The variation in the report time for the average number of coyote sightings and encounters per year. Bars represent the standard deviation between years.
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Table 4. Pairwise comparisons between the different biologically relevant coyote seasons, Breeding (Jan-April), Pup Rearing (May-Aug) and Dispersal (Sept-Dec). All pairwise comparisons were conducted using raw counts of the data. Significant differences are indicated with an asterisk.
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Table 5. Pairwise comparisons between different six hour time periods. All pairwise comparisons were conducted using raw counts of the data. Significant differences are indicated with an asterisk
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