Coyote back in the wild

LOUISVILLE, Neb. — A young male coyote caught freeloading in Papillion is back in the wild.

Reluctantly.

For seven minutes, the coyote laid with his nose just inches from an open kennel door. A sun-splashed country hillside beckoned, but the presence of a few people nearby kept the coyote in hiding.

So Laura Stastny removed the top of the kennel and unceremoniously dumped the coyote out the door. It leaped to its feet and dashed across a field of foxtail weeds and disappeared in a wooded ravine of cottonwoods, oaks and cedars.

“I really have great hopes for him,'' Stastny said.

Stastny is a member of Nebraska Wildlife Rehab, a nonprofit Omaha organization of volunteers that cares for injured, sick and orphaned wildlife and then reintroduces them to the wild.

The coyote released Tuesday on a willing landowner's property in rural Cass County was scavenging — living off pet food — in Papillion neighborhoods when it was captured by the Nebraska Humane Society last month.

It was in good health but slightly thin. It also suffered from a mild case of mange, a disease caused by mites that may cause an animal's fur to fall out. Mange is typical for coyotes in areas with limited food resources, Stastny said.

Caretakers reintroduced the coyote to a diet of rabbits, rats, mice and deer parts.

“We had to reeducate him about his natural diet,'' Stastny said. “We needed to reteach him the appropriate food to eat.''

The animal gained about five pounds during its five weeks in captivity. It weighed an estimated 25 pounds — the typical adult weight of an eastern Nebraska coyote — when released. Its fur regained luster and thickness.

Coyotes are found across Nebraska. They are curious, clever and adaptable, said Scott Taylor of the Nebraska Game and Parks Commission.

They also are the least-tolerated natural predators. Although they take advantage of seasonal changes in food, such as deer or livestock carrion, an individual coyote sometimes learns that sheep, lambs and calves are easy prey. They are one of the top wildlife species responsible for ranchers' complaints.

“Some people are not fond of them,'' Stastny said.

But coyotes are an important part of nature's balance of predators and prey, Stastny said.

“One of the reasons our deer and rabbit populations are so large is because we exterminated our predator animals. Now our ecological system is out of balance,'' she said.

Why the coyote moved into Papillion or where it came from is a mystery. Some suspect it came from the Plattsmouth area southeast of Papillion because the coyotes there have mange.

“It may have been kicked out of a pack, or maybe it came from a small pack and all the others were killed. It's hard to tell,'' Stastny said.

The animal should easily return to life in the countryside because there is a healthy population of coyotes in the area where it was released, Stastny said.

But when it comes to social skills, this coyote is a lone wolf.

“He's a loner and he'll have to do a little work,'' Stastny said. “Animals are suspicious of newcomers, but he's young and acts submissive. That will serve him well.''

The coyote's fate is a wild card.

Coyotes are an unprotected, non-game species in Nebraska. They can be hunted or trapped at any time. Nebraskans don't need a hunting permit, but non-Nebraskans must buy one.

An average 20,000 Nebraska coyotes have been killed for their pelts during each of the last five years, according to Game and Parks fur harvest statistics. Those pelts were sold for about $16 each. Coyote fur is commonly used to line the edge of parka hoods.

“Being a wild animal is a rough, rough job,'' Stastny said. “This guy's an adult and he knows the score out there. One coyote — is he really going to make a difference in the grand scheme of things? No. Someone else is killing five today.''

“We're working on one life here,'' she said, “but we're also teaching people that there's a natural balance and if everybody just does a little bit, we'll all be doing our part.''

Contact the writer:

444-1127, david.hendee@owh.com

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