Coyotes (Canis latrans) are highly adaptable predators found throughout North America. Their behavior immediately following a successful kill often involves moving the prey away from the capture site. This post-kill transport is a calculated action driven by the need to secure the meal from competitors and to manage their food supply effectively.
Immediate Prey Transport
Coyotes frequently move medium to large prey from the location where the kill occurred. This immediate transport is primarily a safety measure to avoid detection by competitors, scavengers, or humans. The priority is to reach a more secluded area quickly, as an animal consuming a meal in the open is vulnerable.
Physical methods of transport vary depending on the size of the animal. Smaller prey, such as rabbits, squirrels, or domestic pets, are typically carried whole in the coyote’s jaws. For larger carcasses, the coyote will drag the body a short distance to the nearest cover, such as dense brush or a wooded patch.
This initial movement is crucial, especially where competition is high. Moving the kill reduces the chance of confrontation with domestic dogs or human interference in urban or suburban environments. The distance moved is usually just enough to place the animal out of sight.
The Role of Caching in Coyote Behavior
Coyotes often move prey as part of “caching,” the term for storing food for later consumption. This resource management technique is employed when the coyote is satiated or the prey is too large to eat in one sitting, preventing the waste of excess food. The mechanism involves using their forelimbs to dig a small depression in the substrate, such as dirt, snow, or leaves. The food item is deposited into this hole, and the coyote uses its snout to push debris over the top, effectively burying and hiding the meal.
This action sequence is similar to the caching behavior seen in other canids, including wolves. Caching provides resource security and prevents spoilage by protecting the food from being scavenged by opportunistic competitors like birds, raccoons, or other coyotes. Coyotes frequently return to the precise location of their buried food, demonstrating a strong spatial memory for cache sites.
Consumption Habits Based on Prey Size
The size of the prey largely dictates the coyote’s post-kill behavior and consumption strategy. Small prey, such as mice, voles, and insects, make up a significant portion of the coyote diet and are typically consumed immediately. These small items offer little surplus, so transporting or caching them is unnecessary.
Conversely, large prey, such as adult deer or livestock, often require cooperative hunting, especially in the eastern United States where coyotes are larger. These kills provide a substantial food surplus. If a coyote is hunting alone, they prioritize caching smaller portions for future meals. For packs, the bulk of the kill is consumed communally, and remaining parts are scattered and cached by individual members. When feeding pups, however, adults consume the meat first and then regurgitate it at the den or rendezvous site, rather than carrying the whole carcass.