PARENT SESSION

DIETARY COMPOSITION OF COASTAL COYOTES (CANIS LATRANS) ON VANDENBERG AIR FORCE BASE, CALIFORNIA. Alice J. Abela. SRS Technologies, 105 North "H" Street, Lompoc, CA, USA.

ABSTRACT- Dietary composition of coastal ranging coyotes (Canis latrans) was examined on Vandenberg Air Force Base, California. A total of 61 scats were collected from coastal roads and access trails during the months of March 2002, and July 2003 through September 2003 to determine food item use by coastal coyotes on Vandenberg AFB and the frequency of occurrence of various prey items in the diet of these coyotes. Identification of residues found in scats was based on seed characteristics, vegetative remains, exoskeletal remains, scales, intact limbs and tails, feathers, eggshells, teeth and microscopic analysis of guard hairs. Mammalian remains were the most frequently encountered residues; they were present in 91.8% of scats. Rodent remains were the most frequently encountered mammalian remain (55.7%) followed by rabbits (34.4%), even-toed ungulates (32.8%), and other carnivores (29.5%). Plant remains were found in 59.0% of scats, insect remains in 45.9%, avian remains in 27.9%, and reptilian remains in 19.7% of scats analyzed.

KEY WORDS: latrans, diet, canis, scat