Wild Coyote standing on a rock looking for next meal. Desert foliage terrain background of the Sonoran Desert. Well fed coyote
Image details
Contributor:
Vincent Palermo / Alamy Stock PhotoImage ID:
H65TXTFile size:
34.9 MB (1.8 MB Compressed download)Releases:
Model - no | Property - noDo I need a release?Dimensions:
4288 x 2848 px | 36.3 x 24.1 cm | 14.3 x 9.5 inches | 300dpiDate taken:
10 April 2008Location:
Sonoran Desert, Santa Cruz county, Arizona, USAMore information:
Coyote males average 8 to 20 kg (18 to 44 lb) in weight, while females average 7 to 18 kg (15 to 40 lb), though size varies geographically. Northern subspecies, which average 18 kg (40 lb), tend to grow larger than the southern subspecies of Mexico, which average 11.5 kg (25 lb). Body length ranges on average from 1 to 1.35 m (3 ft 3 in to 4 ft 5 in), and tail length 40 cm (16 in), with females being shorter in both body length and height. The largest coyote on record was a male killed near Afton, Wyoming on November 19, 1937, which measured 1.5 m (4 ft 11 in) from nose to tail, and weighed 34 kg (75 lb).[4] Scent glands are located at the upper side of the base of the tail and are a bluish-black color.[5] The color and texture of the coyote's fur varies somewhat geographically.The hair's predominant color is light gray and red or fulvous, interspersed around the body with black and white. Coyotes living at high elevations tend to have more black and gray shades than their desert-dwelling counterparts, which are more fulvous or whitish-gray. The coyote's fur consists of short, soft underfur and long, coarse guard hairs. The fur of northern subspecies is longer and denser than in southern forms, with the fur of some Mexican and Central American forms being almost hispid (bristly). Albinism is extremely rare in coyotes; out of a total of 750, 000 coyotes harvested by federal and cooperative hunters between March 22, 1938, and June 30, 1945, only two were albinos. The coyote is typically smaller than the gray wolf, but has longer ears and a larger braincase, as well as a thinner frame, face, and muzzle. The scent glands are smaller than the gray wolf's, but are the same color. Its fur color variation is much less varied than that of a wolf. The coyote also carries its tail downwards when running or walking, rather than horizontally as the wolf does.