One Man's Life Work: The Eastern Coyote

AMBI (NH1 MZ35): BEEP BEEP

ACT (NH2 MZ35): “Yeah, she’s there, that’s a good signal.”

AMBI: (NH3 MZ 36): WOODS/BEEPING UNDERNEATH

32- year old biologist Jon Way is doing what he’s been doing almost every night for the last 10 years - tracking the Eastern Coyote.

Right now, he’s methodically trying to catch a glimpse of a 4-year old female he’s named SNALE.

We’re near the town of Barnstable on Cape Cod:

ACT (NH 4 MZ36):“She’s right in that patch of woods between the road and the powerlines here. It’s hard to figure out where to go because there is so much woods and it is so variable where she might go. So it’s almost just worthwhile to just kind of wait here for a second and see if she gets closer or farther away and then go accordingly”

For the past decade, Way’s captured, radio-collared, then released more than 40 coyotes in Cape Cod and Boston in order to study their habits.

He’s been tracking SNALE for more than a year:

ACT (NH5 MZ37): “She’s definitely active and my hope is she comes out to the powerlines and pokes around so we might actually see her. So our ultimate goal is really not to bother her but to see what she’s doing naturally, so we’re walking away from where she is right now trying to watch from a distance.”

AMBI (NH6 MZ37): WALKING

At 35-40 pounds, Eastern Coyotes are the largest in the country.

They’re considered highly intelligent, social, and very shy.

Their territorial range is on average 10 square miles and because they’re so adaptable, they live not only in rural areas, but urban ones, too.

Way’s study is one of the first ever to examine the habits of coyotes in this part of the country.

And his work is his passion:

ACT (NH7 MZ43): “I love doing this// whenever I’m up at 12 in the morning, 1 in the morning, and I’m just super burnt out// because not much is happening. The second I see one of them cross with another one and they’re active and you get a great sighting it makes it all worth it.”

Of the 40 coyotes Way’s collared, only 5 are still around: ¬SNALE, CAKE, MUP, RADER and SYL.

The others were killed by hunters, hit by cars, or simply disappeared.

One coyote family he and his colleagues tracked was intentionally poisoned just north of Boston.

ACT: (NH8 NH8mbi MZ24): “We tracked those animals for a year and we basically tracked them everyday// And because we tracked them everyday we literally knew based on their movements that they were bleeding to death but we couldn’t do anything about it b/c they were wild animals and wouldn’t let us walk up to them. So it was really disheartening. It took us 6 months to recover from it.”

Way says contrary to most assumptions about coyotes, they’re not dangerous.

The chances of a coyote attacking a person is slim.

New Hampshire’s Department of Fish and Game has no documented case of any attack in the state.

Back in Barnstable, SNALE isn’t coming into the clearing, so Way decides to look for the 8 ½ year old male coyote, SYL.

SYL recently became a father and Way says its wonderful to watch him frolick with the pups. So Way desperately wants to catch a glimpse of Syl and his new pups at a nearby cranberry bog.

AMBI (NH9 MZ47): SHUTTING IGNITION

ACT (NH10 MZ47): “So we’re gonna stand basically with our backs on this side of the car there facing this way. I’m gonna bring my spotting scope, I’ll bring binoculars so we’ll have 2 optics and my phone only because of time, and we’re going just look for him and wait”

ACT (MZ47)
GET OUT OF CAR
BEEP

It’s getting dark at this point but 3 coyotes come into view at the edge of a hill about 300 yards away, and a dog begins to bark.

ACT (NH11 MZ47): DOG BARKING

ACT: (NH12 MZ47) “Clearly this large lab mix, the coyotes have an uneasy truce with it. The dog stays on the south side of the bog where its owner(s house is. The coyotes on the north side and they get in fights occasionally. And if the dog gets close the coyotes will chase it away cause there’s no people around and the pups are clearly over here. I don’t have a count on the pups yet but SYL…there’s another coyote down in the bog there…!”

In the end, no fight breaks out, but Way is disappointed.

There’s still no sign of SYL, or the pups.

Giving it one last shot, Way decides to drive down the road where he knows SYL sometimes crosses the street..

ACT (NH13 MZ53): He’ll come right down this road and cross into this tall grass. I’m basically trying to figure out so we’re gonna do a U turn..

AMBI (NH14 MZ54): NIGHT sound/emergency break

In New Hampshire, hunters can kill as many coyotes as they want at any time of year.

And since hunters don’t have to report those kills, there are no census numbers.

Way thinks all states should have a bag limit, as a way to encourage more appreciation for the animal.

It’s been a long night for Way, and he’s just about given up on any sightings of Syl or the pups when…
ACT (NH15 MZ58): “I thought that was coyotes, Yup…Roll down the windown roll down the window!”

And then for Way a sweet surprise:

AMBI: (NH16 MZ58): HOWLING of pups…UNDER TILL END.

Way travels about 10,000 20,000 miles a year tracking the coyotes -- paying for gas money out of pocket.

He saves by living with his parents, and the equipment is donated to him by a local college.

His goal is to one day set up a coyote research center in his hometown of Barnstable.

And there he says he hopes to study the Eastern coyote for the rest of his life.

For NHPR News, I’m Christina Russo.