Coywolf, no such thing

[rick_iles]

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This thing is massive. Very big prints ( palm sized ).

Maybe it’s a coydolf, or coywog !!!!!

[skulls&bones]

"Canis soupus."

Biologists prefer the term "eastern coyote", since non-hunters who run into these animals exaggerate their size a lot of the time, and "coywolf" as an urban animal frankly sounds scary. They generally have around 30% wolf DNA, but there are a lot of differing viewpoints and discussions can get pretty heated even among experts.

Gotta say, from the standpoint of someone who's returning to school for biology, who's in contact with the experts, and who's new at hunting, this anecdotal evidence is so crucial.

Science is missing out if it doesn't listen to hunters and trappers. Recently, there was a big scientific study on wolverines in Alberta that relied heavily on knowledge from trappers. It's too much of a vast area for non-trappers.

In my area, the GTA, I've seen a lot of reddish eastern yotes, and a few blondes. Rarely black/melanistic, but the wolves around Algonquin do sometimes grow dark coats. You also occasionally get some weird coat patterns like this guy. https://i.pinimg.com/736x/0c/22/c2/0...7b7b1cae11.jpg

I get my local coyote/wolf information from scientists and wildlife photographers, which obviously has its limitations. I get my American coyote/wolf information from scientists, photographers, trappers, hunters, and taxidermists. I'm starting my own network here in the GTA. If you shoot or trap coyote, I'd be interested in seeing the coat colours and the size of the animal. Might be interested in buying pelts and/or skulls to see the size/morphology differences. Hit me up! Sorry that I missed a few PMs, I was just away from the site for a while.