Shannon Grubbs of the University of Arizona and Paul Krausman of the University of Montana said they tracked coyotes in the Tucson area and observed 36 coyote-cat encounters, of which 19 ended with the coyotes killing the cats.
The researchers said while other studies have found approximately 13 percent of a coyote's diet consists of cats, the new study found of the 45 instances during which coyotes were observed feeding, 42 percent of the meals were cats.
The researchers said their findings raise questions about "Trap, Neuter, and Release" programs that involve catching feral cats, neutering them and then releasing them back into the wild.
The American Bird Conservancy said it's consistently raised concerns about TNR programs because cats kill hundreds of millions of birds each year and also because TNR programs do not provide a humane solution for the cats themselves.
The study appears in the Journal of Wildlife Management.
Copyright 2009 by United Press International.
coyotes are here to stay
Unfortunately, lethal control can be a knee-jerk response to the appearance of coyotes in our communities. Nonselective killing methods like snaring often remove individual coyotes who have no history of conflict. Dr. Stanley Gehrt, one of the nation's foremost urban coyote researchers, states: "Indiscriminate removal may exacerbate a conflict, if coyotes that have a healthy fear of people are replaced by new coyotes that have little or no fear of people. Therefore, removal should be discouraged ... and management should focus on public education."
Most conflicts result from people providing coyotes with food, intentionally or not. Fundamental to resolving negative encounters with wild animals is reducing attractants. Keep companion animals indoors at night and feed them indoors as well; walk dogs on leashes, keep refuse containers inaccessible to animals, and keep other food sources like fallen fruit and birdseed off the ground; these are easy ways to reduce conflicts. Unless people take responsibility to remove attractants to discourage unwanted wildlife, negative encounters with coyotes and other predators will occur and animals will be destroyed. Love ‘em or hate ‘em coyotes are here to stay. For more information visit http://www.ProjectCoyote.org
Also, watch the film trailer for “American Coyote— Still Wild at Heart” at www.projectcoyote.org/index.html
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