INTRODUCTION Coyotes are highly adaptive and widely distributed across the United States (Figure 1.)

1. Understanding Coyote Demography for Endangered Species Management NYEEMA C. HARRIS, Wildlife Biology Program, Department of Forestry, ncharris@ncsu.edu Mentor: Dr. Michael Stoskopf, Department of Clinical Sciences, michael_stoskopf@ncsu.edu • INTRODUCTION • Coyotes are highly adaptive and widely distributed across the United States (Figure 1.) • Coyotes influence numerous other species through direct competition and predation, including the following endangered and threatened species: • - Black-footed Ferrets • - Mountain Plovers • - Red Wolves • - San Joaquin Kit Foxes • - Sonoran Pronghorn • - Swift Foxes • Figure 1. Coyote Distribution • OBJECTIVES • Explore the availability of stage-specific vital rates for coyote populations • Determine which stage-specific vital rate contributes the most to population growth in coyotes • CONCLUSIONS • The population ecology of coyotes is not well studied, despite their wide distribution, abundances, and impacts on species of conservation concern. • Management efforts should focus on reducing adult survival to reduce the population growth rate in coyotes, based on the results of this model. • More comprehensive studies are necessary that estimate multiple vital rates and corresponding variances, especially in the eastern and southern United States. • Understanding the population ecology of coyotes can inform management decisions and conservation efforts; especially in areas where coyotes cohabit with species of conservation concern. • ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS • Alison Al-baati and Dr. Shafer (AGEP) • National Science Foundation • College of Veterinary Medicine, NCSU • Department of Forestry, NCSU • METHODS • Conducted extensive search in peer-reviewed literature for vital rates across coyote populations • Constructed post-birth, female-based matrix from mean vital rates (Figure 2.) • Vital rates included in deterministic matrix were : • - Survival of Pups (SPups) • - Survival of Juveniles (SJuveniles) • - Survival of Adults (SAdults) • - Proportion Breeding of Juveniles (PBJuveniles) • - Proportion Breeding of Adults (PBAdults) • - Litter Size of Juveniles (LSJuveniles) • - Litter Size of Adults (LSAdults) • F= Fecundity = (S * PB * LS) for juvenile and adult stage classes • Calculated Elasticities, which measures the proportional change in the population growth rate resulting from a proportional change in each stage-specific vital rate • RESULTS • Found 13 studies that reported coyote vital rates • Few studies (<15%) were conducted in the eastern or southern United States (Figure 3.) • Only 31% (4/13) of studies report >2 vital rates, but 7 vital rates were needed for the matrix • Adult survival was the most studied and pup survival the least studied vital rate • Adult survival has the greatest potential influence on the population growth rate in coyotes (Figure 4.) Figure 2. Post-birth, Female-based Coyote Matrix Figure 4. Relative Contribution of Vital Rates to the Population Growth of Coyotes Figure 3. States where Coyote studies have occurred 0 FJuveniles*0.5 FAdults*0.5 SPups 0 0 0 SJuveniles SAdults