September, 1943 
in the heavy timber along the Sangamon 
River and the Vermilion.” 
Among about 1,600 fur-takers who re- 
ported during the 1939-40 season, only 
2 stated that they had caught “wolves,” 
which were probably coyotes. If the same 
ratio holds for the 25,000 or more trap- 
pers who did not report, we may assume 
that less than 40 coyotes were caught. 
Coyotes are not protected by law at any 
time of year, and a number of them are 
annually turned in for bounty at a time 
when their pelts are not salable. Most are 
turned in for bounty in the northern half 
of Illinois; very few are taken in the 
southern quarter, fig. 20. Two skulls, 
turned in for bounty as those of “‘wolves,” 
JO DAVIESS | STEPHENSON |WINNEBAGO|BOONE| MSHENRY | LAKE 
1912 {912 | 1908h912| 1937 |1912 
936- 
1936-1 “1512 DEKALB | KANE 
1936-13 1912 
Be Tees 1912 veel 
1936-2 1936-3 
GRUNDY 
1912 i 
“a 
DOUGLAS 
CLARK 
cumatrto| 1912 
1936-9 1936-2h936-1 
fee 
pe ae 
JEFFERSON 
1936-1 
RANDOLPH | PERRY CATON 
| 
7 
Cie WitirAmson| SALINE 
vas JOHNSON) yaa 
Fig. 20.—Recent specific records for Illinois 
of coyote and of dog misidentified as coyote 
or “wolf.” Dates show counties in which these 
animals were reported for the year indicated. 
The numerals following some of the dates in- 
dicate the number of animals reported for 
those years. 
ww 
1936-1 : 
HAMCOCK| MEDONOUGNH 
1936-13 1936-5 § 
SCHUYLER 
1940 
nae 
1936-1 
1937 
Mour: FurBEARER DISTRIBUTION AND INCOME 
Deg 
one in Schuyler County, figs. 21 and 23, 
and one in Warren County, figs. 22 and 
23, and now in the collection of E. J. 
Koestner, formerly of the University of 
Llinois, were submitted to Dr. George G. 
Goodwin of the American Museum of 
Natural History, New York, who deter- 
mined them as coyotes with possibly a 
faint trace of dog blood. 
The Illinois Natural History Survey 
collection contains two skulls from Mce- 
Lean County and one from Sangamon 
County, collected in 1942 and determined 
as coyotes by E. A. Goldman of the U. S. 
Fish and Wildlife Service. A third, from 
the Cook County Forest Preserve District 
in 1942, has been determined as a coyote 
by the writer. Fig. 24 pictures the head 
of this animal. 
A skull in the American Museum of 
Natural History, collected in Macoupin 
County in 1940, was determined as a 
coyote by Dr. Goodwin. 
A rough idea of the distribution of 
coyotes in Illinois may be gained from 
reports of their presence in 1912, from 
the number reported turned in for bounty 
to county clerks and from reports in 
newspapers; however, some of the ani- 
mals reported in newspapers as coyotes . 
are wild dogs. Because dogs that run 
wild, as well as coyotes, are commonly 
reported by hunters, trappers, county 
clerks and reporters as “wolves,” it is 
impossible to plot the distribution of these 
animals separately. Fig. 20 shows the 
distribution of so-called ‘‘wolves,” coyotes 
and wild dogs reported as coyotes. 
Some miscellaneous records are present- 
ed below. 
Wood (1910) quotes early settlers as 
declaring coyotes were common in Cham- 
paign County about 1850 and seen in this 
county 10 years later. 
During the 1937-38 season, trappers re- 
ported catching “wolves” at Payson, Ad- 
ams County; Serena, La Salle County; 
and Bensenville, Cook County. 
In about 1938, three hunters from 
Granville and Spring Valley captured two 
old “wolves” and seven cubs, according to 
the Illinois Sportsman for February, 
1940; the location was probably Putnam 
County. 
During February, 1937, “wolves” were 
reported cornered in a gravel pit near 
Crystal Lake, McHenry County, accord- 
