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Coyotes Blamed For Missing Critters

Tribune photo by CANDACE C. MUNDY

Mark Adams, a foreman at L & D Farms, says his cat Selena received a large bite wound - possibly from a coyote.

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By STEPHEN HAMMILL

The Tampa Tribune

Published: June 21, 2008

KEYSTONE - About three months ago, neighbors living off Tarpon Springs Road began mysteriously losing animals.

The tally so far: five cats killed, a missing baby calf and dozens of worried residents.

Once the sightings started coming in, the cause seems to be clear.

Coyotes are on the hunt.

"It was a shock to me that there would be coyotes around here," said Judy Travis, resident at 19002 Blake Road since 1978.

According to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, coyotes are common in every county in the state, and as development pushes them away, they settle in rural areas.

They rarely attack humans, but smaller animals, such as rabbits, raccoons, armadillos and cats, make easy prey.

Officials at the wildlife commission say a pair of coyotes is responsible for attacks this month on small dogs on leashes in Estero, near Fort Myers.

In May, Travis called law enforcement to voice her concerns after her neighbors' lost two cats and said she saw coyotes prowling their property. Florida Fish and Wildlife officer Paul Van Ost came out to investigate the sightings and confirmed the existence of coyotes in the area.

"Honestly, it was hard to believe at first," said Mark Adams, foreman at L&D Farms on 18737 Crescent Road. "Then my wife started seeing them in pairs, cruising across Tarpon Springs Road during the day."

The local coyotes eventually claimed one of Adams' cats. "My cat had never left, and one day she was gone," he said. "They're so used to dogs; I think they just let them walk right up and snatch them."

After his visit to Keystone, Van Ost told Adams there wasn't much his agency could do. He recommended folks lock up their animals at night and not keep food out.

Now Adams carries a rifle on his early morning rounds. According to the wildlife commission, coyotes, like most predators, are most active late at night or early in the morning.

"They told us not to shoot them at night, but otherwise, they encouraged us to hunt them down," he said.

Adams said he thinks the coyotes probably came from someplace else.

"They have nowhere else to go and no food chain," he said. "There aren't many rural areas like this left around here."

They're getting more brazen, too, often walking out in front of residents in daylight "They make themselves at home," Adams said. "They don't seem to mind people at all."

Adams said sightings dropped in the past two weeks, "but now we're finding smaller prints with larger sets of prints."

Coyotes can have litters of up to 10 pups each year.

"For many years, people have dumped cats out here," Travis said. "I worry for them."

Travis owns three house cats and cares for another four living mainly outside. She now takes them in at night.

She said the coyotes have pushed beyond the tag of "nuisance."

"I love wildlife, but I can't stand those helpless animals being killed like this," she said.

The wildlife commission said attacks on pets or humans by wildlife should be reported to the Wildlife Alert Hotline at (888) 404-3922.

Sightings can be reported by visiting MyFWC.com or by calling (863) 648-3200.

Reporter Stephen Hammill can be reached at (813) 865-1523 or at shammill@tampatrib.com.

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