Coyote Scat

This pile of scat was about 13cm long and each part had a 3cm diameter. It was full of hair/fur and broken bones. This composition is typical of winter coyote scat. The top side was bleached white by the elements, while the underside was brown.

This scat was strategically placed by the coyote. Coyotes use scat to mark their territory, and this scat was deposited in the middle of a wide walking path in the middle of a meadow that borders a river and a mixed forest.

comments (7)

Ferdy Christant

Lion

Fascinating diversity in scat, who would have thought! Posted 7 years ago
1. Christine Young
  
  Lion
  
  Yep, different food = different poop. Coyote scat has a lot of larger, crunched up, broken bones. You'd think that they would just pull the meat off the bones and thus ingest fewer bones, but apparently not. Posted 7 years ago
2. 1. Ferdy Christant
    
    Lion
    
    Don't even want to think about the "exit process" in this case. Posted 7 years ago
  2. 1. Christine Young
      
      Lion
      
      Oh no, eek. I was thinking about that too, but you said it, lol. Posted 7 years ago
    2. 1. Christine Young
        
        Lion
        
        I couldn't stop myself from learning more about this. I googled, "Does it hurt coyotes to poop out bones?" And, I learned that it doesn't usually cause a problem for several reasons. The fur that they ingest with the bones may soften the process and provide some protection during the excretory process. Also, during digestion, stomach acid breaks down and rounds the exposed ends of bones so that they can't penetrate tissues. I also discovered that coyotes do pull the meat off the bones, but they also consume the bones for their nutritional benefits. Posted 7 years ago
      2. Ferdy Christant
        
        Lion
        
        Phew, good thing this is answered, no limits to your curiosity :) Posted 7 years ago
        
        Christine Young
        
        Lion
        
        I didn't want you to lose sleep pondering the workings of a coyote's excretory system. Plus, you're right - my curiosity demanded an answer to the pooping out bones conundrum. Posted 7 years ago