Biologists have begun a first-of-its-kind project to monitor the population of Los Angeles' urban coyotes using GPS collars.
According to a report by L.A. Curbed, the first of two coyotes captured for the new project is known as C-144, a two- or three-year-old female who "spends most of her time in the Westlake neighborhood" and is raising "at least five pups."
C-145, captured later in May, is a male estimated to be between four and eight years of age with a home range in the Silver Lake neighborhood, and which was later seen hanging out with a friend, which is kind of unusual coyote behavior.
National Park Service is hoping "to better understand how coyotes survive in one of the nation's most intensely urbanized areas." These coyotes were reportedly spending most of their time in the city especially in parks and open areas, L.A. Curbed reported.
A biologist released a statement regarding their on-going project saying, "From just a few months of data, we now know that coyotes are persisting within home ranges that have high human densities and little natural habitat, which is quite remarkable."
Meanwhile, the National Park Service released a chart generalizing the analysis of their 100 recorded GPS locations from C-144 and C-145, which they have been studying since May. They used a landscape that is different than past coyotes they have studied in western Los Angeles County. NPS found an average of 77% of the locations in natural areas and only 10% in intensely developed areas.
Surprisingly, the subset analysis found 60% of C-144's locations and 50% of C-145's locations to be "developed." The study was recorded in natural areas, defined as at least one square kilometer of natural vegetation. None of these urban coyotes' GPS locations can be categorized as natural. Instead, they are considered "altered" landscapes, such as a dirt road or a vacant lot.
