How to ID Coyote Poop

The coyote is a wild canid about the size of a domestic German Shepherd dog. These animals are common across the United States, and easily adapt to suburban areas. They live in small groups that change their makeup frequently. One way to know if there are coyotes in your area is to identify their poop, generally referred to as "droppings" or "scat."

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

1. Find out if you are in an area likely to be inhabited by coyotes. They are most common in rural areas where there are woods and farmlands, but also may be found in suburban areas. You are unlikely to find evidence of coyotes in town or in the middle of a large city. You can find coyote scat along country roadsides, near forest hiking paths or around farm fields.

2. Recognize the shape of coyote scat. Coyotes produce scat that is about the diameter of a cigar and is tapered at one end.

3. Observe the contents of coyote scat. Coyotes eat small animals, birds, and insects. Thus their excrement contains bits of bone, feathers, fur and insect casings.

4. Know the color of the droppings. Coyote scat is generally grey to black depending on what the coyote ate recently. If the scat has been lying in the sun for a while it will be bleached to a lighter color.

Resources

• This website, hosted by the University of California, Davis. provides information on coyotes.