Coyote 797 



I have not seen this ventilator, but may have overlooked 

 it, as I had not heard of such a contrivance when last I ex- 

 amined a Coyote's den. It is well known that a family will 

 have several dens, some of which are, as Barton says, "sleeping 

 places for use during the heat of the day, which is one reason 

 why so many attempts to dig out Coyote dens often fail of 

 results." 



Usually the young are born during the first half of April, young 

 April 9 in the New York Zoological Park and April 20 in 

 the Washington Zoo represent the extreme dates at hand. 



They number from 3 to 10, but are usually 5 to 7. 



They are blind and helpless, but covered with close, dark 

 ash-coloured fur. 



It is generally believed that the father is not permitted to 

 enter the home for some days after their birth, but I have not 

 been able to confirm this belief. 



It is sure that he is never far away, and his devotion is 

 vouched for by all who know him. Dr. W. T. Hornaday 

 informs me that the father of the brood born April 9 took a 

 keen interest in the young, and became very ofiicious, even 

 vicious, in their defence. Their eyes opened on eighth and 

 ninth days, variously. When about three weeks old the 

 mother would carry them out into the sun, or about the yard 

 and back again. At five weeks they were old enough to walk 

 out alone. They were not fed by regurgitation at any time, 

 so far as known. 



Keeper Carson, however, assures me that in the Philadel- 

 phia Zoo, where the Coyotes frequently breed, the mother 

 disgorges food for them regularly, exactly as does the mother 

 Gray-wolf. When some six weeks old, both parents begin to 

 bring solid food to the little ones, and the entrance to the den 

 becomes littered with feathers, fur, bones, and other remains 

 of their prey. 



The young are so keen to see and welcome father and 

 mother back with the new catch, that they make little path- 

 ways from the den to all the near points that give a view. Here 



