GRAY WOLVES AND COYOTES 235 



are finally deserted during July. By August 1 the 

 young are left by the parents to shift for themselves. 



' ' In the earlier descriptions the prairie wolves were 

 usually said to hunt in packs. Lewis and Clark, Say, 

 Richardson, and others so reported, but the Prince 

 of Wied met them only singly. It is probable that 

 they hunt in numbers only when the quarry is large, 

 as in the case of deer and antelope, and as many as 

 three have been known to pursue a single jack-rabbit. 



"Coyotes feed chiefly upon animal matter, but 

 when such food is scarce they freely eat peaches, 

 apricots, grapes, and other fruits, and even melons, 

 usually destroying more than they eat. In certain 

 areas they feed largely on juniper berries, manzanita 

 berries, and the fruit of the prickly pear. . . . 

 Horned toads and other lizards are eaten, and, on 

 the low, tropical coast of eastern Mexico and Texas, 

 coyotes have been seen searching the beach for crabs, 

 fish and turtle-eggs. 



"Beneficial food-habits. Coyotes destroy many in- 

 jurious species of mammals, and in this way are 

 of positive benefit to farming interests. The various 

 species of jack-rabbit are often included in their diet, 

 and the smaller rabbits are habitually eaten. The 

 constant warfare of the coyote upon these rodents 

 has much influence in keeping down their numbers, 

 and the growing abundance of rabbits in some sec- 

 tions of the West has been attributed to the destruc- 

 tion of coyotes as the result of high bounties offered 

 for them. 



"Prairie-dogs also are a staple coyote food. The 



