Have coyotes been getting bigger? I was used to popping the scruffy little 25 pound slate-gray coyotes in the southern California desert, then I moved to Washington state about 8 years ago. Was startled with the size and quality of these things. Have seen some that were golden colored like a golden retriever. Have one on my wall that measures 60 inches nose to tip of tail. Beautiful silver, rust and black coat. Not sure what he weighed live but he was fairly heavy to haul back to the truck. No, he's not a German Sheperd! Pegged him with a 7mm mag/140 soft point. I was deer hunting at the time, and he was silly enough to show up towards the end of a long day of not seeing any deer! How big do these things get? Regards, Guy

I've weighed quite a few dogs here in Montana. The 2 biggest were both males and one went 34 poulnds and the other went 37.

Females on the big end generally upper 20's.

"GET TO THE HILL"

Dog

can't wait for the day we can hunt their bigger cousins!!!!!!!!!-grins

here in Alaska the males run from 38 to 52 lbs feamales from 29 to 38 lbs in the east they are a true hybread have data on some that were in the 61.lb class we go from the normal rusty color to a light pale silver here the high country coyotes are the biger of the two moast stand from 25 to 35 inches at the schoulder have a good one: Coyote Slayer

As a rule, mountain coyotes are larger as stated above. You can go from 20 lb. high desert coyotes to 35 lb. mountain coyotes in New Mexico. It is fun calling both in the same day. I don't think the coyotes are changing, just your location.

Good Hunting,

Bob

Bob's got it right. As with any given species, the individual populations tend to be larger the further you go from the equator (larger bodies being better at conserving heat in cold climates and smaller bodies being better at dispersing heat in warm climates). The coyotes of the southwestern desert are about the smallest, and the Alaskan and Canadian varieties are the largest (dog hybrids excepted).

What's interesting is how body size can vary in the Western states in just a few miles. Coyotes on the desert floor may top out a twenty pounds or so while their cousins only a few miles up in the montane forests may be half-again as large.

The largest yotes inhabit the North Eastern U.S. (N. New York, N. New England). They often go in excess of fifty pounds. All coyotes in the Rockies are smaller than these as a rule...

BA

Brad, except for the great big ones, but they usually have those funny collars on.... . Dutch.

Dutch that's right... then the "S.S.S. Rule" applies!

Brad

It's kinda weird, I mostly hunt about 65 miles from where I live, and down there the biggest 'yote is around 25 lbs. max. When I hunted on the Air Force base near here (Barksdale)
they would average forty I swear, although I never weighed any to be honest. Might have more to eat there?

I think there is a correlation between size and mountain coyotes. I shot one a few years ago in the Sacramento Mtn's of New Mexico and he was the size of a German Shepard! I'd never seen a coyote this big...but he was the only one I ever shot up in the Mtns. Down in the flats they are pretty small and scruffy.

Maybe they have to hunt larger prey in the Mtns, fawns and young deer and sheep etc? I hadn't thought about it much till now but something is sure different.

[ 07-19-2002, 00:57: Message edited by: Pecos45 ]

In Wis. the biggest I have weighted is 52lbs the avg males around 40 females 30 or so.

Any western coyote over 32lbs. or so is in the same class as a 400lb. man, it happens but not that ofter. When I was in both the Calif. and Ariz. calling clubs the average male dog weighted 22-25lbs. A big one came in at 26-32lbs. this average was taken over a number of years and more then a few hundred dogs. It's amazing how a coyote gets lighter when he is actually put on a scale. The ones from N. Ariz. or the Sierras in Calif. came in just about the same. The biggest coyote I have personally seen was one I called in for my sister in Asotin Co., Wash. Sis poped him with my 222Sako, he weighted 39lbs. A real buster.

call em in close---Pete

Pete, in my experience, they lose about 15 pounds the second they drop, and another 10 if there is a scale around......

They sure don't look big when you get close. FWIW, Dutch.

FYI-Here are two typical pictures. The first is a desert coyote in southern Arizona. The second is a high desert coyote in central New Mexico. You can see the difference in their size. The mountain coyotes are proportionately larger.



Good Hunting,

Bob C.

Bob, thanks for the pix. They shows exactly what I was questioning. I was used to those little desert dogs, got up here in the Cascades and found big old purty mountain dogs. Same species, but a different critter. Guy

Put them on a scale, don't go by the looks of the pelt and length of fur. You can't judge by one dog shot here and another there.

Obviously Pete-

The pictures were to help illustrate his point.

FYI-The desert dog weighed 19 lbs., the high desert dog weighed 30 lbs.

Bob

I was working up loads for my BP out in the Castleford desert, just west and south Ray Atkinson's back yard, when I had a yote sneak up on me thru the sagebrush. I had just fired, heard a noise, turned, and about 20 feet away was a real big (make a police shepherd look puny) yote. He was seeing what I was up to, and had little fear of me, made dust thru the brush just as I loosed my 44 on him. Given the size and arrogance, I thought maybe there was a breeding program going on to "improve" the species. BTW he got away, I was too slow with the 44. He was too big by a factor of two to be pure yote.

Hey Bob lighten up, I grew up in S.Ariz. and I still don't buy into the mountain coyote thing. I belonged to the calling clubs for a number of years down there and now I'am in Idaho, a mountain state. If there is any difference in coyote size between here and the S.W. desert I have yet to see it on a scale. I've called & killed dogs in Ariz., Calif., Nev., Utah, Ore. Wash., Mont. and Idaho and the scales don't lie. I could show you a picture of a 32lb. dog I called and killed out of a melon patch not far from Red Rock, Ariz. but that dosn't make all desert dogs that big. Get my point. If you take an average over a number of years you'll find western coyotes run more or less the weight.

My comments were not made based on two coyotes. They were based on my personal experience, admittedly only in four states, and the experience of two friends of mine. The first is a full-time predator guide in central Arizona and the second is the ADC officer for Socorro County, New Mexico. They both hunt the different zones all of the time. I have noticed the difference in my calling and they see it every day. Your experinece is apparently different. We can agree to disagree on this one I guess.

Bob

Bob,
If you have seen it we'll let it go at that. I won't be bull headed about this, but we don't agree. Pete

I don't find it difficult to believe that coyotes can vary in size. Everyone agrees that whitetails do differ from Alabama to Saskatchewan....Sask deer are twice as big.