This may sound a little odd, but exactly how big do coyotes get? I'm in Upstate SC, and have never seen one before. Until this morning that is, at least, I think it was a coyote. Had the silver back, and red fringe along the sides and head, but I always thought these things were on the small side, not much bigger than a fox. This thing I saw loping across the road this morning was massive. Bigger than my dogs, and I have 75+ pound mutts that can put their paws on my shoulders and lick my face standing. To be honest, the coloration reminded me more of a grey fox, but I know fox don't get that big.....do they?

Now I understand that a lot of the bulk that I saw comes from the thick fur, so it may not be massively heavy. But still, the sheer size of the thing left me with my jaw hanging. My Wife was in the car with me, and she said that's what she saw the other day when she tried to tell me she saw a Wolf. Now I'm fairly certain we don't have wolves here in SC, but after seeing the size of this thing, I can understand how she would think that way, and I had to apologize for belittling her for thinking she saw a wolf. This thing was that big.

So if anyone can shed some light on these critters for me, I'd appreciate it. This thing I saw this morning was easily large enough to be hunting deer solo. Heck, it was bigger than most of the deer I see along that same road.


Bewildered in Upstate South Carolina



Ken

Also in Upstate SC, I have absolutely no experience with coyotes except that I have been hearing them for a while and finally saw one last Thursday 2 weeks ago on my way in to work. It was larger than any fox, but significantly smaller than, say, a Lab or Collie. "Rangy" is about the best desciption I can give regarding its body.It was certainly large enough to make a meal of my 16 pound Jack Russell or a fawn, and likely even a young small deer.

It was probably less in weight. Our Coyotes up here have Wolf blood, they have done DNA testing and have found DNA that matches wolves in Quebec. Cross breeds! Maybe they have moved south also.

Here's a link to check out. JP
http://mainecoyote.com/yotecontest06.html

Here in Indiana 40 lbs or so is a whopper.

I think they get the biggest in the northeast. They can get over 50 lbs around there, I think

Western coyotes are smaller - more like 25 lbs or so.

Some push 65lb.s, not too many. We have some real big ones around here. JP

Don't forget that coyotes tend to have long legs, which can make them look bigger than they really are.

Don't forget that coyotes tend to have long legs, which can make them look bigger than they really are.


Now I'll admit, when my jaw dropped open, my eyes did kinda bug out, which can make things look bigger. For example, I coulda sworn it was a big as a horse, and stretched the entire width of the road when I first laid eyes on it. So I blinked several times, and got it down to a manageable size :) But I swear, even with the big fur, I never expected them to be so large. I wish I'd have had my camera on me so I could've snapped a photo. Better yet, my rifle so I could've snapped a photo of it's corpse. With that big honkin thing roaming through the woods, no wonder our Turkey population is suffering. It'd take several of them to make a meal for that monster. I was just remarking the other day that I never see the wild Guinea Fowl that used to roam on that end of the mountain. I guess I know what happened to them now.....

Ken

I don't know anything about coyotes in S.C., but thought that I would offer the following regarding them in the Northeast (from the NYS DEC website):

Description:The Eastern coyote looks like a medium-sized German shepherd dog, with long thick fur. The tail is full and bushy, usually carried pointing down. Ears are erect and pointed.

Length:4 to 5 feet (including tail)

Weight: 35 to 45 pounds (males usually larger than females.)

Color:Variable, from blonde or reddish blonde to dark tan washed with black. Legs, ears and cheeks usually reddish.

Dan

If I had to guess at the weight of the one I saw, I'd say probably 35-40 pounds. Not huge by any stretch, but certainly bigger than any fox by a wide margin. I can imagine 2 or 3 of them taking down a big deer, or a big dog.

Seems there have been some efforts to reintroduce the red wolf not too far from SC, not too far by wolf looking for a mate standards. They are listed as 75 pounds, but with their long legs and a good coat could seem larger. A 6 month old female red wolf walking beside my 80 pound dogs looks about the same ball park. In the wild, wolves have heavier coats.

Seems there have been some efforts to reintroduce the red wolf not too far from SC, not too far by wolf looking for a mate standards. They are listed as 75 pounds, but with their long legs and a good coat could seem larger. A 6 month old female red wolf walking beside my 80 pound dogs looks about the same ball park. In the wild, wolves have heavier coats.


Holy Crap!! I just pulled up pics of the Red Wolf on Google Iamges, and that looks a whole lot closer to what we saw than the Coyote pictures. Also seems to fit a lot better size wise as well. Where exactly are they trying to reintroduce the Red Wolf? Here in the Upstate, I'm about 10 Minutes from the NC state line, and no more than an hour or two from the Georgia and Tennessee lines. I'll do some searching, but if you could point me to a link, I'd appreciate it.

Thanks,

Ken

Holy Crap!! I just pulled up pics of the Red Wolf on Google Iamges, and that looks a whole lot closer to what we saw than the Coyote pictures. Also seems to fit a lot better size wise as well. Where exactly are they trying to reintroduce the Red Wolf? Here in the Upstate, I'm about 10 Minutes from the NC state line, and no more than an hour or two from the Georgia and Tennessee lines. I'll do some searching, but if you could point me to a link, I'd appreciate it.

Thanks,

Ken

The red wolf program is on Bull Island, SC.This was begun as a captive breeding program, then the wolves were released onto the island, and lately they have all been recaptured. Supposedly the only mainland restoration site has been within the Alligator River Nat. Wildlife refuge in NC.

Bill White

Problem with red wolf re-introduction is that they are way more likely to interbreed than other species. Have to re-introduce them in numbers to get a goodly population going. Have run across several re-introductions of reds this last year, none of them the ones mentioned by pisgah. They did not go “extinct in the wild” but were driven there by the same government now re-introducing them. (Talk about job security).
Am in a stressful thing. Give me a few days, and I may be able to come up with a listing. Don’t know exactly where you are but was thinking the eastern Tennessee try would be the closest. Know of one or two others to the north would also be within range.
Have to understand that color name has nothing to do with the wolves’ appearance; they all run the same gambit of colors. Size and behaviors are what distinguish them. And I don’t buy the extinction thing; at least, not retail. Few hours ago, an associate shared with me his sighting of a Canadian gray (near the Utah border), in almost your exact words.
My take is that each area has wolves who belong there. As long as the wolves you got are the ones who belong there; things is Jake. (Liberal edge of my thinking?) Is only when you see wolves who don’t belong there that you got a problem.
I believe in God, and that He gave creation some thought. Remove any native species, and something else will take it’s place. Then, you might get an idea what God was thinking, when he placed the native there.

Alligator River National Wildlife Refuge, Pocosin Lakes National Wildlife Refuge (just across the Intracoastal Waterway), a nearby private hunting reserve (c. 25 square miles), Great Smoky Mountains National Park (the only failure of this group). Approximately 100 red wolves in the wild.
Range collared gray wolves are documented to travel looking for mates is a bit over 300 miles. Hope this helps.

Lot of socio-political nonsense proliferating. Government, not locals tried to destroy the red wolf. What I have heard from a friend of one of the owners of the private hunting reserve is that the red wolves are great, and do not take deer. Certainly could but, outside of the government and ARA, no one is saying that they do. They tend to mate younger than grays, therefore their packs and needs tend to be smaller; and they are not as choosy. What you observe about birds may well be much closer to fact than official ramblings.

Also talked with a friend lives in the southwestern part of Idaho today. He says that the coyotes in his corner are pushing 70 pounds. Shared something else with me that I would like to share. Whenever he gets depressed, he reminds himself that he owns his own trout stream. Hard for him to stay depressed. (Not wealthy, just bought at the right time.)

I have seen and shot Coyotes that went from 35 or so pounds up to a couple that went over 70, it depends on what they get to eat, but I live in the southern midwest they eat good out here, even our deer are corn fed and tend to run large.You are correct about the fur though it can make them look a lot larger than they are

I finally shot my first coyote this weekend when out turkey hunting. Average sized female around 30-35 lbs. When I lived back at Ft Bragg in the mid 80s I remember them reintroducing the Eastern Red Wolf back then.

CD

Maybe the wolf reintroduction program should be mated with the feral cat reduction program (place the wolves where they can eat cats conveniently), accomplishing two goals at once and keeping everyone happy. :)