Black Coyote

[keano44]

Last Sunday morning, I shot a black coyote while deer hunting. It was a male, and weighed 55#. I'd heard there had been sightings of black coyote's in the area, but had never seen one before. It was very healthy looking, beautiful coat and tail. Question for the coyote hunters and trappers out there:How rare is a black coyote? I'm thinking of getting it mounted, or at least get the hide tanned into a rug.

 

[Polishrifleman]

I don't know the answer to your question but can say I saw a black one this past Deer season here in Washington too. I chose not to take it because it was 7am in the morning and thought it would be good running around scaring up some deer (it didn't work:banghead: but I had a good time anyway).

 

[keano44]

Coyotes and deer (pic. warning)

Three weeks ago, for Halloween weekend, I took my 11 yr. old nephew to my hunting lease for the youth hunt. He had killed his first deer, a doe, on this same hunt last year when he was ten, hunting from my box stand, with my .308 rifle using managed recoil Remington ammo. This year, same stand, rifle, and ammo, he shot a small six point buck, in the last few minutes of daylight, at 200 yards. The buck dropped on the spot. Silas, my nephew, and his father, my brother-in-law, who was hunting with him watched it for a minute or so, and began celebrating, cheering, "high-fiving", etc. When they climbed out of the stand to go take a closer look, the deer was gone. Neither of them had seen which way it went. A little while later, I came to help find the deer. We found evidence of a stomach or gut shot where the deer had fallen. After looking for an hour, myself and my hunting partner, another experienced deer hunter (30 yrs.), and finding no blood trail, we decided to leave the deer so as not to spook it up, let it have time to die, and we would come back and find it first thing in the morning. Our theory of not spooking the deer, giving it time to die without jumping it up and losing it paid off. It hadn't gone 100 yds. We found it the next morning, after some looking. But, coyotes had found it first. We were not able to save any meat, but were able to manage to get a few pictures as the head, neck, and one shoulder were left untouched. The hide of the deer on the side that was against the ground was OK, but the exposed side was gone.
This past Sunday morning, I killed a coyote at the hunting lease, possibly one of the culprits.

 

[hps1]

Question for the coyote hunters and trappers out there:How rare is a black coyote? I'm thinking of getting it mounted, or at least get the hide tanned into a rug.

I have shot quite a few coyotes in the past couple of years (missed a couple, too )) and have never seen a black one. Should I be forutnate enough to shoot a nice one like yours, I would certainly have it mounted.

Regards,
hps

 

[MCgunner]

Four or five years ago I shot a black coyote along with a normal colored one at my place out of my stand. I don't know how rare they are, didn't think much about it at the time. I'd never seen one before. I thought it might be a crossed up feral dog hybrid or something. I didn't have a camera and didn't recover it anyway. The normal coyote I shot about 25 yards out of my stand. The black one darted off in the grass and brush. Then, I saw him running across the pasture from the fence on the big ranch that my land borders. He stopped about 300 yards out and looked back and I put a .308 into him. He fell right there. I didn't cross the fence onto the ranch to drag him back. I took the other one and ty wrapped it to the fence so the fence riders would see it. Ranchers like to have coyotes shot. I figured they might appreciate the favor. Ain't like I made any dent in the coyote population around there, of course. LOL

It's likely a color variation, genetic, but again, I have no idea how rare it is.

 

[keano44]

It did have a small white patch on the throat/chest. You can see it in the first picture I posted. It may be a cross with a dog. Coydog?

 

[Bob R]

You don't see a lot of black 'yotes. The last tanned pelt I saw of a black 'yote was being sold for about 400 dollars. Of course, this was a tourist trap, so that may have influenced the price a little.

It sure was a pretty mount pelt though.

bob

 

[MCgunner]

Doggyote?

 

[dfaugh]

It did have a small white patch on the throat/chest. You can see it in the first picture I posted. It may be a cross with a dog. Coydog?

Quite possible. Normally coyotes come in a variety of colors from almost beige to black, with most being in middle ("sable" brown), but vitrually no white anywhere. But white chest/neck is a common color variation, in several breeds of dogs (GSDs, Huskies, etc.). And black is also found, although not real common, in these breeds.

 

[LMC]

keano44, do you know of any hunting leases down here that are taking new members.

thanks

 

[eastwood44mag]

I can't tell you what to do with your money, but it's strange looking enough that I'd have something done with it.

It looked so small in the picture....until I noticed the rifle for comparison.

 

[keano44]

This may be a better photo-to get an idea of the actual size of it.

 

[Roadkill]

I've seen several and shot three. The oldest was a coydog male that I wacked in a nearby cove. He was more dog than coyote. Had a wide head and jaws. The other two were smoky black with more coyote traits. I've seen them tan, light grey, light brown, dark brown, and every color in between.

 

[Art Eatman]

55 pounds? I think coydog. That's some 15 pounds above what I'd expect from a southern coyote.

Pretty hide; good rug.

, Art

 

[langenc]

Coyote can vary considerable in color. Red to grey-black and the light ones of course. From a trappers prospective the lighter the better. Dark ones have value to someone who wants to hang one the wall/den.

 

[Idano]

keano44 I did a little research and found this excerpt from the Internet Center for Wildlife Damage Management website:

Coyote-rare color
Description: This black coyote is very rare as are albinos. But color commonly ranges across gray-brown-red.
Photo Credits: Edward D. Kellems

• N.Y.S. D.E.C. game commission officer Robert Doe confirmed that this was indeed a new New York state record coyote. Its official weight was 115 pounds, it is a very large male and was shot this (2005-6 in February '06)) regular deer season just out side the town of Hilton. (Hilton is just West of Rochester in Northern Monroe County) It has been spotted on several different occasions chasing deer & livestock, dogs, and cats.

I have never seen a black or albino coyote and I certainly have not seen any coyote close to 100 lbs.

 

[Cindog]

Not sure how rare they are but I got pictures of two different black coyotes on my game cams this fall and my cousin got a picture of a black coyote as well. I am guessing his picture, the first picture posted, is of the same coyote in my pictures from earlier in the season given the white mark on his chest.

 

[Gewehr98]

I'd say coydog.

It doesn't look too much different than my own 55-pound dog, truthfully. That's kind of unnerving, I'll have to keep her on leash when we're doing our walks in the woods these days!

 

[dogrunner]

Saw a totally black one in the Ocala National Forest, Fl. last deer season. Roughtly a quarter mile South of the Naval Bombing range....Quite a large animal, nearly the size of a small German shepard. Also, had a friend that had his Beagle attacked by a Coyote in the same area. It does seem that the ones in Fla. tend to run somewhat darker. I've seen 'em in Ariz & Mex & they were a sort of tan color. Every one I've seen in Fla. has been quite dark.

 

[wolfan]

Actually, black wolves were once VERY common in Pennsylvania. They thought they had killed them all off, but perhaps these large coyotes have some of that blood in them. There have been coyotes found in NJ, CT and MA all with wolf DNA. However, the DNA is closer to the wolves that once inhabited the territory. Just some thought on the subject!

 

[glocker82]

Dude that wasn't a coyote...you shot my dog!

 

[ronwill]

Looks like a coydog to me. I've shot a few of those when I worked on the families ranch as a teenager.

 

[G17Steve]

LOL did it have a colar on it ? Thats usually a bad sign.

Ive herd of black yotes and seen some videos of them on youtube but Ive never seen one here in FL.

 

[eliphalet]

Seen hundreds of coyotes in the West, never saw a black one yet. My guess is it is a mix.

 

[Triple S]

There are areas with strains of black coyotes all over the US. For some reason, the black phase is very common in the area we hunt in SC. However, after hunting all my life in FL/TX/& GA I have not seen one there. I think it all depends on when and where you have that particular color trait introduced in nature.