Queens Red Fox winter coat

Halloween Footprints

I found these canine footprints under one of my game cams on 10/31/15. The animal that left them was not photographed, as they were directly under the camera and thus out of the detection zone. An SD card is 1.25 inches in size so this print is approximately 2.5 inches when taking into account the shifting of sand from the landing and propelling of the foot. This matches the accepted variation of coyote track size. What makes these compelling is that I received a message from an individual claiming to have observed a coyote crossing Northern Blvd at Udall's cove on Oct 22nd, only several days before I came across these prints.

Queens Red Fox summer coat

Updated Sightings Map of Coyotes in Queens

Below is a map of Coyote sightings that have been reported by the media in Queens. Mouse over the markers for the specific locations and date of sighting.

• http://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/queens/animal-control-officers-set-trap-rochdale-village-coyote-spotted-article-1.418192
• http://www.timesledger.com/stories/2010/11/laurelton_times_newskbxwqzi03102010.html
• http://nymag.com/news/features/coyotes-2014-2/
• http://nypost.com/2011/01/23/coyotes-grave-love-prospects/
• http://nypost.com/2004/01/27/queens-coyote-goes-with-floe/
• http://www.nbcnewyork.com/news/local/Coyote-Rooftop-Bar-LIC-Bar-Long-Island-City-Queens-298052391.html
• http://newyork.cbslocal.com/2015/04/27/middle-village-coyote/

Coyote Lures I

Canine Tracks

I photographed these prints on 06/13/15. They are clearly canine in origin, with a length of approximately 2.75''. They look more like a coyote than a domestic dog based on the following critiria. Toes 2 and 3, the top two toes, sit almost on top of toes 1 and 4, the two outside toes. This creates more space between the toes and heel pad. The toes, especially toes 1 and 4, point straight ahead with little sideward splay. These features are coyote traits. However, it is impossible to say with 100% certainty that these were made by a coyote as the track imprints were not well defined in the ground, and only two prints were observed, not an entire trail pattern.

 

Track info: https://m.flickr.com/#/photos/moss_glen_nature_photography/8391808797/

Research Area

Udall's Cove Preserve in Little Neck, Queens, NYC is where all of my research has been conducted. Although small it is largely inaccessible with few trails (all established trails are in the far Northern and Southern sections of the preserve) and with abundant, thick growth throughout. The reason it caught my attention is because the Long Island Railroad runs through the Northern end of the preserve. It has been theorized that Coyotes from Westchester County and the Bronx travel along railways into Queens. This is essentially the only way the Locust Manor LIRR coyote would have been able to get to it's location. I browsed railroad trackway maps to see where they adjoined with parks and Udall's Cove fit the criteria. I don't believe Udall's Cove is host to a resident Coyote(s). Based on known Coyote territory requirements it may be too small, hence it is my belief that the preserve and railway act as a corridor for travel to and from other locations. Udall's Cove is close to Alley Pond Park, Coastal Marshes, a cemetery, and a golf driving range (rabbit habitat). As previously mentioned I am the first to officially document Red Fox living in this park.


http://www.nycgovparks.org/greening/nature-preserves/site?FWID=33

Possible Coyote?

Another ambiguous picture of what may or may not be a coyote. There are only two possibilities for this one, coyote or dog. I have never observed a dog in this area either in person or on camera. It's simply not in an area where dogs are likely to roam free or where they would go if free, though that certainly doesn't mean a loose dog couldn't go in there. The grainy and shadowy quality of picture is unable to confirm either way.

Red Fox in Udall's Cove, Queens, NYC

More pictures of the red fox from my study area. This so far is the only publically photographed red fox documented in Queens, NYC outside of Alley Pond Park.

 It looks like he has a meal in his mouth here:

Unknown Animal

This animal was photographed on my trail cam recently.  I am unable to determine what it is. Based on the camera positioning and location of the animal I believe it is too big to be a cat. It clearly isn't a raccoon. The tail doesn't seem to match a fox. This isn't a location where dogs would be unlikely to roam. It's inconclusive, however the tail size and shape does seem to match this: Link

Raccoon Remains

I recently came across these scant remains of what appears, based on the color and fur type, to be raccoon. These were found less than 50 yards from the scat finding I wrote about last month. This isn't necessarily related to a coyote, but I thought it was an interesting find nonetheless.

Red Fox in Queens, NYC

My trail cams have photographed a red fox.  According to the Urban Park Rangers, Field Guide to the Natural World of New York City By Leslie Day, and multiple other sources, red foxes are known to exist in Queens only in Alley Pond Park, where they are quite rare. I  could not find any source that said red foxes are in the area where my camera caught one, or anywhere else in Queens outside of Alley Pond. The camera that took the photo below is in Udall's Cove Preserve. This is the first publically and photographically documented red fox in Queens outside of Alley Pond Park.

Sources:

• http://www.dnainfo.com/new-york/20130702/new-york-city/where-spot-wildlife-new-york-citys-concrete-jungle
• http://books.google.com/books?id=-BoOGYeaQ64C&dq

Scat Finding

This scat appeared to be at least 1 day old and was located on the middle of a rock in a dried stream bed trail crossing. I used a quarter as a size reference as quarters are approximately 1'' in diameter. The size is roughly 4'' long and 3/4'' wide with one end tapered. It contains white or light gray colored fur.

According to The Complete Tracker - The Tracks, Signs and Habits of North American Wildlife by Len McDougall, Coyote scat is generally between 3'' to 4'' long and 1'' in diameter. In Tracking and the Art of Seeing: How to Read Animal Tracks and Sign by Paul Rezendes, Coyote scat is said to be between 1/4'' to 1 5/16'' in diameter. Coyote scat is often filled with animal fur, is tapered, and is frequently used as a territory marker, thus it is deposited in commonly traversed areas such as on trails. The scat I found matches precisely the size, shape, composition, and location of Coyote scat.

Sources:
http://www.gov.mb.ca/conservation/wildlife/problem_wildlife/coyote.html
http://icwdm.org/inspection/BlackBrownDroppings.aspx

Brown Opossum and Albino Mourning Dove

Some interesting non-canid fauna in Queens that I have came across.


An Albino Mourning I photographed in central Queens. A very unique looking bird.

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Opossums generally have gray underfur with gray, black, or brown outer guard hair. Less commonly they have black underfur with black or gray guard hairs. I recently found a carcass of an Opossum (confirmed via dentition) on Long Island Railroad tracks that had brown underfur and brown guard hairs. A known, but very rare combination, especially in the North where the gray outer guard hair predominates.

Sources:

A Brown Mutation in the Opossum (Didelphis virginiana) with Remarks upon the Gray and the Black Phases in This Species by Hartman
http://books.google.com/books?id=jcIUAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA146&lpg=PA146&dq=A+Brown+Mutation+in+the+Opossum+%28Didelphis+virginiana%29+with+Remarks+upon+the+Gray+and+the+Black+Phases+in+This+Species&source=bl&ots=YBTZfxVvMK&sig=bh0HzxIU3D0yF01thDpZeZHtPdI&hl=en&sa=X&ei=fRXsU57UBsHvoATqtILIAg&ved=0CD8Q6AEwBA#v=onepage&q&f=false
---
Indiana DNR - Opossum
http://www.in.gov/dnr/fishwild/3367.htm
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The Wild Mammals of Missouri by Schwartz 
http://books.google.com/books?id=uEWl0ZM6DfUC&pg=PA24&lpg=PA24&dq=opossum+brown+underfur&source=bl&ots=R-GReqYKuM&sig=-BvF8kYYn5bKo5enq4WZU1308ZI&hl=en&sa=X&ei=TxnsU9uRHM6dygTnw4HYCg&ved=0CEoQ6AEwCA#v=onepage&q&f=false
---
Preliminary Study of the North American Opossums of the Genus Didelphis by J. A. Allen.
https://play.google.com/books/reader?id=wgstAAAAYAAJ&printsec=frontcover&output=reader&authuser=0&hl=en&pg=GBS.PA147

Sightings Map of Coyotes in Queens

Below is a map of Coyote sightings that have been reported in the media in Queens. Mouse over the markers for the specific locations and year of sighting.

• http://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/queens/animal-control-officers-set-trap-rochdale-village-coyote-spotted-article-1.418192
• http://www.timesledger.com/stories/2010/11/laurelton_times_newskbxwqzi03102010.html
• http://nymag.com/news/features/coyotes-2014-2/
• http://nypost.com/2011/01/23/coyotes-grave-love-prospects/
• http://nypost.com/2004/01/27/queens-coyote-goes-with-floe/

About Queens Canid Research

My name is Brad Gibson and I am researching wild urban canids in the borough of Queens, NYC. It has been thought coyotes are traveling into Queens from upstate NY via railroad lines. My intention is to document this dispersal and colonization. The methods used are non-lethal and non-conspicuous. I have examined locations around Queens that could potentially harbor Fox and Coyote.  In these locales I have looked for signs of their presence on foot, and have set up motion activated cameras for long term observation. In the coming days, weeks, and months I will share with you what I have found.

An Introduction to NYC Coyotes

Welcome. After having observed the Locust Manor Long Island Railroad Coyote in Queens, NYC in the fall of 2012 I became fascinated with the possibility of Coyotes living in the United States most populous Metropolis. Coyotes have been in the Bronx for some time now, and are widely accepted as being residents of that borough. The Bronx is connected to Westchester County and thus Upstate NY, hence Coyotes colonization there is to be expected. Coyotes in Manhattan are a surprise however, as there is little habitat for them, along with the fact that Manhattan is an Island and is thus isolated from the mainland. Every year Coyotes are spotted in Manhattan and these rogues are presumed to have crossed railroad tracks, bridges, or even swam across the East and/or Hudson rivers. Unlike the Bronx, the Coyotes in Manhattan are not residents, they are roaming vagrants that always end up captured and relocated. Brooklyn has had very few Coyote sightings. This is likely due to the lack of parks in the Borough, and the lack of potential travel paths a Coyote could use to get there. Queens is home to the city's only non-Bronx resident Coyote(s). The Locust Manor Long Island Railroad station is adjacent to a small parcel of wooded land. Coyotes were first spotted there in 2010 and as recently as last year. I witnessed a large, darker-than-usual color morph, Coyote there in 2012.

The Coyotes in NYC, like all Coyotes in the Northeastern United States, are not genetically pure. Canis Latrans historically is a Western species. Gray Wolves, as a competitor and adversary, kept Coyote population numbers in check and in a specific geographic area. However as the United States was industrialized, forests were destroyed and along with them the creatures that inhabited them. Wolves were exterminated from nearly the entire Eastern half of the country. This left no wild canids and a large niche to fill. By the early 20th century deforestation had slowed, and by the mid 20th century forested land was rebounding. Coyotes, being more adaptable than Wolves, started moving East. The Coyotes moving towards the Southeast remained more or less pure Coyotes, however the ones coming Northeast met up with Canis Lycaon, the Eastern Wolf, in Canada. The Wolf numbers were low, so they readily interbred with these migrating Coyotes creating a Coywolf that populated the Northeast. Every Coyote in the Northeast is in reality a Coywolf, some containing as much as 80% wolf DNA. For the sake of simplicity this blog will refer to these Coywolfs that inhabit NYC simply as Coyotes.



Source:
Genetic Characterization of Eastern “Coyotes” in Eastern Massachusetts. By Way, Rutledge, Wheeldon, White. Northeastern Naturalist 17(2):189-204.