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| My favority snacks |
Tuesday, April 9, 2013
Why You Want Me Here? Ecological Role
So why share your Chi Town home with us? I’m so glad you asked. Well for starters our diet is centered on keeping pest species down which directly benefits you. My favorite meals are rodents! Yes, yummy mice, voles and rats make up nearly 42% of Cook County dwelling coyote diets. Often deer which you regard as “cute” are responsible for stripping your bushes and causing terrible car accidents. Their populations need to be kept in check and we help do that. Almost a quarter of our diet is deer, which is almost equal to fruit. Other snacks include eastern cottontail rabbits, birds, raccoons and more. Even in urban areas we avoid eating human garbage. Less than 2% of our diet consists of human associated food (Urban Coyote Project, n.d.). Please avoid leaving pet food out, since I could find it quite tempting and then might get very upset if I come across your pet. Be smart so I don’t have to be tempted by something I would not encounter in the wild.
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I didn't know coyotes were so helpful. I've had deer eat my vegetables and trample through my garden. I have a new respect for coyotes since they help keep the deer away!
ReplyDeleteI agree. I never gave their role in keeping other populations in check much thought until now!
ReplyDeleteWe used to have a resident coyote. Once he disappeared, we had groundsquirrel and skunk issues. Not sure where he went, but we definitely felt the after-effects.
ReplyDeleteGreat to know that they are so beneficial to the ecosystem. I was so unaware of their varied diet.
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