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Coyote Shapefiles
updated June 30, 2007

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THE NARRAGANSETT BAY COYOTE STUDY 

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for the latest scoop on our NBCS coyotes!

Scientist and Student Pieces welcome!

Narragansett Bay Coyote Study Team's Spencer Tripp, Numi Mitchell, and Ralph Pratt, veterinarian, hold a groggy collared coyote while Pratt administers the antidote to the anesthetic April 2008:  

Foxy coyote has pups!  Link to Coyote Bytes and Video clips.

Living with Coyotes - a 70 minute video of a talk sponsored by the Tiverton Land Trust

Click here for NBCS Safety Tips and Facts

Got coyote questions?  Sightings?  Observations?  You can call the Coyote Info Line at (401) 924 – HOWL (4695).  The line is checked twice daily and a NBCS staff member will return your call.  Emergencies will be referred to the local police.

The Coyote Info Line is made possible by a grant to the Potter League for Animals from the Prince Charitable Trusts


Recently, there has been much concern expressed in both local and regional press about what appears to be rapidly growing coyote populations. Some have strong opinions about management practices that should be implemented to control coyotes. Before the NBCS began work in 2005, there was almost no scientific information about 1) Rhode Island coyotes or, 2) island populations of coyotes. Without scientific data, neither local legislators nor DEM have the tools needed to make decisions about regional coyote management.

Project Goals:Newport Neck, RI
  • We are seeking to answer several questions about local coyote populations: 1) How many coyotes are currently living on each island, 2) Are the populations stable or growing, 3) What resources are they using, 4) Do the coyote populations pose a threat to human interests on the islands, 5) What are the best management strategies for coyote populations?
  • We will improve the quality of available public information about Rhode Island's coyotes as well as the quality of public outreach through valid scientific sources. This will be accomplished with the cooperation of the local school systems and this Coyote web page on The Conservation Agency's web site. The equipment required to track the coyotes will allow us to post the animals' location and movement in near real time. Through extensive cooperation with local school systems, data created by this study will be immediately incorporated into the schools' lesson plans. School children will be able, through the Internet, to check the coyotes' movements daily and learn about their behavior and habits.
  • In the final stage of the study we will create Management Strategies for Coyotes on Conanicut and Aquidneck Islands. Local legislators and DEM will be able to use these recommendations to make informed management decisions.

The Conservation Agency will coordinate all scientific aspects of the project.  An Educational Coordinator will direct the educational components tailoring them to interested local schools and after school programs.

2005-2007 Coyote Locations NBCS Packs

The picture above is a snapshot of the movements of nine Narragansett Bay Coyote Study (NBCS) coyote packs through June 2007.  Each pack has a different color code.  The coyote location points are overlaid on RIGIS (RI Geographic Information System) aerial orthophotos.  Each one of these location points has a time and date associated with it.  Using GIS software, students and scientists alike can analyze how coyotes spend their time.

The Providence Plan hosts our internet Map Server called the "Coyote Mapper."  Data will be updated monthly.  NBCS coyotes are up and running!  It is an interactive map powered by GIS software; you can use some of the same GIS tools that participating classrooms do.   

Zoom in on coyote location points where you live and find out when coyotes were there...  When the viewer comes up, check the boxes on the right and "refresh map" to see the coyote data layers.  Then you can experiment with the tool buttons on the left!  

Click on COYOTE MAPPER link below:
 Go to Coyote Mapper!
Please Join Our Sponsors

Click here to see our Coyote Study Sponsors

Click here for participating schools and organizations

Donate online

The NBCS is proud to partner with the following organizations

West Greenwich Animal Hospital

 
 
Narragansett Bay Coyote Study Staff

Numi Mitchell, Ph.D. – Lead Scientist and Project Director
(401) 423-0866 numi@theconservationagency.org
Numi is a biologist specializing in the study of resource and habitat use by wildlife. She usually troubleshoots endangered species problems – this is her first project in which management issues concern a species that is too successful – an interesting challenge. 

Spencer Tripp – Professional Wildlife Trapper
(503) 669-5040  spencer@theconservationagency.org
Spencer is a professional trapper with over 50 years experience with the behavior and habits of fur bearers. He is the National Trappers Association Director for the Rhode Island Trappers Association acting as the liaison between the State and National Agencies.

Ralph Pratt, D.V.M. – Project Veterinarian
(401) 397-8887 apratt@wgah.necoxmail.com
Ralph took his degree at Tuft’s School of Veterinary Medicine and has his own practice, the West Greenwich Animal Hospital, which he runs with his wife Amy Pratt, D.V.M. He started his graduate career in wildlife ecology, moved on to veterinary medicine, and has now come full circle as he became Chief Veterinarian for the Narragansett Bay Coyote Study.
Lyn Malone - Director of Education for NBCS
 (401) 245-4395  lynmalone@worldviewsgis.com
Lyn taught for many years in Barrington but now has her own educational consulting firm, WorldViews, specializing in GIS curriculum development and training.   She is an ESRI-certified K-12 GIS instructor and is the senior author of the extensive ESRI textbook Mapping our World.  Since 2005, Lyn has brought her ideas,  expertise in science education, and GIS talents to the project.
Lynne Mallonee - Director of Humane Education at the Potter League
(401) 846-0592  lynnem@potterleague.org
Lynne has for years brought humane education to elementary and middle-school classrooms on Aquidneck Island and Jamestown.  In 2006 she incorporated our coyote study findings in her curriculum.  She thrills kids with hands-on learning, coyote facts and stories, and teaches them how to safely coexist with and appreciate our newest top predator.

The Jonathan and Judy Nelson Internship Award
NBCS Logo Thanks to the generosity of the Nelson Family and their friends, the NBCS was able to support the efforts of two research interns for the summer of 2007.
Nelson Intern:  Wendy Finn, Wildlife and Conservation Biology Major, URI Nelson Intern:  Meagan Griffin, B.S. in Wildlife and Conservation Biology, URI

DONATIONS NEEDED TO SUPPORT NBCS
Carpe Canem - Seize the Dog!


We have estimated the cost for the Narragansett Bay Coyote Study at more than $230,000 per year.  Ongoing efforts have raised more than half of this goal in donations and in-kind support. You can support us at any level. Following are several sponsorship opportunities available.

Narragansett Bay Coyote Fund Measurements taken, collar on, this coyote is ready to receive the wake up antidote

Mitchell restrains coyote while the vet prepares the anesthetic. Anesthesia allows us to work safely without trauma to the animal.Larger grants help to underwrite costs of the overall study including the trapping and tagging of one coyote from each of 10 packs in 2005; collection of information such as population density, resource use, diet; analysis of data and research for a peer reviewed technical study of Aquidneck and Conanicut Island coyotes; development of region-specific management strategies.

Coyote Collars

The Conservation Agency will be using specialized combination GPS-radio collars, designed for our study by Habit Research of Victoria, B.C.  Each morning the collars transmit, by radio signal, the last 200 hourly GPS locations of the collared study coyotes. The real-world coordinates transmitted can be used for GIS mapping and analysis. The radio signal component allows scientists to directly approach the collared coyote and observe accompanying members of the pack.  The collars are fitted with a programmable release mechanism.  A year to-the-day after collaring a catch bolt draws back and the collar falls off the coyote. The radio signal allows us to retrieve it, mount a new battery, and use it again.  

Name a Coyote

May 2007

Newport Vineyards names our newest male coyote from Middletown!  Shown below right is "RHODY" coyote and at left are the owners of Newport Vineyards, Paul and John Nunes, along with Numi Mitchell and veterinarian Ralph Pratt, who are making the final adjustments to Rhody's new collar.  

Clarification:  Rhody has not been drinking the Vineyard's "Rhody Coyote Hard Apple Cider"; he is anesthetized.

If you prefer, you can mail your tax-deductible donation to: The Narragansett Bay Coyote Study, The Conservation Agency, Branch Office, 67 Howland Avenue, Jamestown, RI 02835.  For more information, please contact Numi Mitchell, Lead Scientist, at 401-423-0866.               
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