Coyotes are medium-sized canines native to North America that have adapted well to urban and suburban environments across the continent. As coyotes have become more common in areas with high human populations, many people wonder about the nature of interactions between coyotes and humans. Specifically, do coyotes exhibit fear towards humans? The answer is complex, as coyotes demonstrate a mix of fear and curiosity when encountering people.
In general, coyotes tend to avoid close contact with humans when possible. However, their behavior can vary depending on the individual coyote, level of habituation, time of year, and specific context of the interaction. Understanding coyote fear responses towards humans can help promote safe coexistence between coyotes and people sharing the same urban spaces.
Do coyotes view humans as predators?
Coyotes do not typically view adult humans as predators. However, they may perceive humans as potential threats and exercise caution around them. Wild coyotes that live in areas with minimal human contact will exhibit greater wariness around people compared to urban coyotes that frequently encounter humans.
How do coyotes react when encountering humans?
Coyotes generally respond to humans with caution and fear. When approached by a person, a coyote will usually flee immediately. Even habituated urban coyotes retain some skittishness and fear around humans. They tend to keep their distance and avoid direct interaction.
If a coyote does not immediately run away, it may display threatening behaviors like growling or baring teeth to signal that it feels threatened. Coyotes may attempt to “escort” humans out of their perceived territories as a bluff behavior. However, actual attacks on people are extremely rare.
Do coyotes bark at or stalk humans?
Coyotes may bark at or seem to stalk humans, but these behaviors often come from a place of fear rather than aggression. Coyotes will bark at people to signal their presence and create space. Stalking behaviors are part of predatory sequence, but coyotes do not view humans as typical prey. Stalking allows them to retreat if a potential threat like a human gets too close.
Factors Influencing Coyote Fear of Humans
Many different factors can impact the level of fear that coyotes display around human presence. As coyotes grow more accustomed to living near people, their behaviors adapt accordingly. However, their inherent wariness never fully disappears. Elements influencing coyote fear responses include:
Habituation
The more frequently coyotes encounter benign humans, the more their fear responses are likely to decrease through habituation. Urban coyotes living in parks and neighborhoods tend to become fairly habituated. Rural coyotes remain more apprehensive due to minimal human exposure. Habituated coyotes may exhibit bolder behaviors.
Food conditioning
Access to human food sources like trash, compost, and outdoor pets can condition coyotes to associate humans with rewards. This can compete with their natural wariness, encouraging close-up interactions in search of food. Preventing food access is key to promoting coyote fear of humans.
Mating season
During mating season from January to March, coyotes tend to become more visible and vocal. Their behaviors change while seeking mates and defending territories. Increased territorial displays could be misconstrued as boldness, when in reality they remain wary of human interactions.
Time of day
Coyotes are naturally most active at dawn and dusk. Humans encounter them more frequently during these peak activity periods. Daytime coyote sightings do not necessarily indicate a lack of fear, but rather coyotes continuing usual routines amid urbanization.
Presence of pups
Adult coyotes may display more protective behaviors when their pups are present from April to August. They could vocalize, follow walkers, or shadow dogs to escort them away from dens. These defensive behaviors arise from fear of the unknown threat, not aggression towards humans.
Individual variation
Each coyote has a unique personality shaping its behaviors. Bolder coyotes exist, but represent the minority. Most coyotes exhibit fearful caution around humans. any incidents likely involve anomalous individuals that have become excessively habituated.
How Coyotes Demonstrate Fear of Humans
Coyotes display their fear of humans through a number of avoidance behaviors and physiological stress responses:
Fleeing
The most common coyote reaction upon encountering a human is to immediately flee. They will run away or quickly retreat from an area. This demonstrates their ingrained wariness.
Hiding
Coyotes may opt to hide rather than flee when escape routes are blocked. They will conceal themselves as much as possible behind bushes, trees, structures, etc. until the perceived threat passes.
Alarm barking
A coyote may rapidly bark at the sight of a human suddenly appearing. These sharp barks function as alarms announcing a potential threat presence. The coyote then retreats while barking.
Avoidance
Coyotes fearful of humans will structure their activities to avoid direct contact. They will stick to perimeter areas, move through cover, and wait for people to leave rather than approaching.
Increased cortisol levels
Studies measuring coyote stress hormones have shown their cortisol levels spike when encountering humans. Elevated cortisol indicates an animal perceives a situation as fearful or stressful.
Rapid breathing
When approached, coyotes often exhibit rapid panting and short, shallow breaths indicative of a frightened response. This mirrors fearful arousal in humans.
Low ear position
Coyotes pin their ears back against the head when fearful. Flattened ears communicate the coyote feels threatened and signals submission.
Low body posture
A coyote scary of humans will lower its body posture, hold the tail low and tucked, and crouch or lie down close to the ground to appear small and non-threatening.
Avoidance of eye contact
Coyotes that are fearful rather than aggressive avert their eyes when humans look at them. Prolonged eye contact is perceived as threatening behavior.
| Coyote Behavior | Description | Indicates |
|---|---|---|
| Fleeing | Running away quickly | Fear |
| Hiding | Concealing itself behind objects | Fear |
| Alarm barking | Rapid sharp barks upon sighting human | Fear |
| Avoidance | Structuring activities to avoid humans | Fear |
| Elevated cortisol | Increased stress hormone levels | Fear/stress |
| Rapid breathing | Short, shallow pants and gasps | Fear |
| Low ear position | Ears pinned back against head | Fear/submission |
| Low body posture | Crouching close to the ground | Fear/submission |
| Avoidance of eye contact | Looking away when human makes eye contact | Fear |
Why Coyotes Remain Wary of Humans
Thousands of years of evolution have shaped coyotes as predators that rely on flight over fight for survival. This has ingrained strong fear responses towards potential threats, including humans. Some key factors explaining why coyotes remain fearful of people include:
Lack of socialization
Unlike domesticated dogs, coyotes are not socialized to accept human presence from an early age. Their wild nature makes them instinctively wary of unknown entities like humans.
Humans are new predators
While coyotes evolved alongside wolf packs, bears, and cougars, modern humans represent a new potential predator. Coyotes have not adapted through generations to view humans as anything other than threats.
Persecution by humans
Historically, humans persecuted coyotes by shooting, trapping, and poisoning them. Generations of persecution solidified avoidance behaviors toward people for survival.
Smaller size
The average coyote weighs 30-50 pounds, much smaller than an adult human. Their smaller stature increases vulnerability, making fear an important survival strategy.
Limited defense abilities
Unlike wolves, coyotes’ smaller jaws and limited pack sizes reduce their ability to effectively defend themselves against humans if required. Their best defense is flight.
Wariness enhances survival
Maintaining fear of humans likely gives coyotes an evolutionary advantage. Caution minimizes risky encounters that could jeopardize survival and reproduction.
Humans are unpredictable
Coyotes cannot reliably read human cues the way they discern other animals’ behaviors. The unpredictability of humans also promotes innate wariness.
Managing Coyote Fear of Humans
While coyotes retain an inherent fear of humans, proper management strategies are still required to promote ongoing wariness and minimize risky habituation in urban areas. Methods for managing coyote fear include:
Discouraging habituation
Avoid feeding coyotes, secure food attractants, supervise pets outdoors, and promptly remove coyotes observed near residences to prevent habituation.
Being aggressive when necessary
Making loud noises, waving arms, throwing sticks, spraying water, and shouting aggressively at coyotes can reinforce fear. Avoid running away, which may trigger predatory chase instincts.
Establishing dominance
Maintaining upright postures, direct eye contact, and assertive energies sends signals to the coyote that you are not prey and that they should defer to you.
Using deterrents
Devices like motion-activated lights, sprinklers, and noise makers can make a property seem unpleasant and frightening to coyotes.
Exercising caution around dens
Coyotes are most protective of dens with pups. Avoid these areas, leash dogs, and teach children not to engage with coyotes. Extra caution is warranted during pup season.
Supporting official hazing
Non-lethal hazing programs by wildlife or animal control officials using paintballs, bean bags, and other scare tactics can reinforce coyote wariness of humans.
Teaching proper responses
Communities should educate citizens on averting eye contact, yelling, standing tall, and appearing aggressive to discourage coyotes from approaching.
| Management Strategy | Description |
|---|---|
| Discouraging habituation | Promptly removing coyotes, securing attractants |
| Being aggressive | Shouting, waving arms, throwing objects |
| Establishing dominance | Direct eye contact, upright posture |
| Using deterrents | Sprinklers, lights, noise makers |
| Exercising caution around dens | Avoiding areas with pups |
| Supporting hazing | Noise scare tactics by officials |
| Teaching proper responses | Yelling, standing tall, aggressive posture |
Conclusion
In summary, coyotes exhibit a mix of fear and caution when encountering humans. Their behaviors balance wariness with curiosity and attempts to habituate. While urban coyotes may become bolder as they frequent human-populated areas, they still regard people with apprehension and never fully lose their fear. Humans should understand typical coyote fear responses and take appropriate measures to discourage dangerous habituation. However, overall, coyotes remain wired to be much more afraid of us than we need to be of them. Continuing public education will be key to fostering ongoing coyote fear of humans that facilitates safe coexistence.