Detailed COYOTE Report on Monday Oct 4th 9:30 a.m. Corporate Services Committee meeting.
A delegation will be speaking about his daughter's attack this summer by a coyote, her 5 week rabies treatment, and her fear and anxiety as a result.
Note coyote sightings have been reported all throughout the City, not specifically in areas near development, as seen on map below which plots 2021 sightings.
Coyotes are often heard in my neighbourhood. Until last year I was never alerted to them as a problem. Last November however, several residents emailed Council members about coyotes in the area of Northern Dancer school property. For several days the children were kept inside at recess and the police were called.
At that time Coyote Watch Canada (CWC) spoke with some of the residents and they wrote back to Council members to say they understood the situation better.
But since the spring of 2021 three children were bitten by coyotes in two different neighbourhoods. The 10 page Staff report CORP-21-48
(which starts on page 7) explains actions and some limits determined by Ministry of Natural Resources:
"Relocating coyotes is generally not an option. Live trapping and relocation of wildlife is regulated and requires release/relocation within one (1) km from the trapping site.
Live trapping of coyotes is rarely effective/successful except for juveniles. The Ministry does not grant exceptions for a coyote to be relocated more than one (1) km from its place of capture. The intent of the restricted release distance is:
• To prevent the spread of diseases and parasites to populations in other areas;
• To ensure the animal has the best possible chance of survival by releasing it as close as possible to its home range;
• To prevent or reduce the potential for problem activity in other areas;
• To prevent exchange of genetics between different wildlife populations and ensure carrying capacity is not surpassed within a specific area.
Additionally, coyotes are highly territorial (coyote territories do not overlap), and pairs will defend territories ranging in size from a few km2 (where food sources are abundant) to up to and more than 100km2 (where food sources are minimal/scarce)"
The City has implemented the following measures in 2021 in response to coyote concerns:
1. Amended Nuisance By-law to prohibit & fine feeding of wildlife;
2. Erected fencing around naturalized areas in locations of concern;
3. Increased signage warning of presence of coyotes in the area;
4. Removed some public garbage containers used for disposal of household garbage and ensured daily collection from remainder;
5. Public Notices, social media & website updates with information how to prevent & respond to coyote encounters;
6. Direct door to door information campaigns by MLE Officers to residents, schools and some businesses;
7. CWC conducted training on aversion conditioning techniques to Municipal Law Enforcement MLE Officers and community members;
8. MLE educated community members on aversion conditioning techniques;
9. Real time monitoring of sighting reports – MLE works with Service Oshawa to dispatch coyote sightings in an effort to conduct aversion conditioning.
It's important to recognize that COYOTES Are Part of the Urban Landscape in Ontario and across Canada. In fact there are benefits of co-existence in the environment, The City of Toronto has this e-learning link available for better understanding: https://www.toronto.ca/ext/digital_comm/mls/coyotes-in-the-urban-landscape/story_html5.html
A delegation will be speaking about his daughter's attack this summer by a coyote, her 5 week rabies treatment, and her fear and anxiety as a result.
Note coyote sightings have been reported all throughout the City, not specifically in areas near development, as seen on map below which plots 2021 sightings.
Coyotes are often heard in my neighbourhood. Until last year I was never alerted to them as a problem. Last November however, several residents emailed Council members about coyotes in the area of Northern Dancer school property. For several days the children were kept inside at recess and the police were called.
At that time Coyote Watch Canada (CWC) spoke with some of the residents and they wrote back to Council members to say they understood the situation better.
But since the spring of 2021 three children were bitten by coyotes in two different neighbourhoods. The 10 page Staff report CORP-21-48
(which starts on page 7) explains actions and some limits determined by Ministry of Natural Resources:
"Relocating coyotes is generally not an option. Live trapping and relocation of wildlife is regulated and requires release/relocation within one (1) km from the trapping site.
Live trapping of coyotes is rarely effective/successful except for juveniles. The Ministry does not grant exceptions for a coyote to be relocated more than one (1) km from its place of capture. The intent of the restricted release distance is:
• To prevent the spread of diseases and parasites to populations in other areas;
• To ensure the animal has the best possible chance of survival by releasing it as close as possible to its home range;
• To prevent or reduce the potential for problem activity in other areas;
• To prevent exchange of genetics between different wildlife populations and ensure carrying capacity is not surpassed within a specific area.
Additionally, coyotes are highly territorial (coyote territories do not overlap), and pairs will defend territories ranging in size from a few km2 (where food sources are abundant) to up to and more than 100km2 (where food sources are minimal/scarce)"
The City has implemented the following measures in 2021 in response to coyote concerns:
1. Amended Nuisance By-law to prohibit & fine feeding of wildlife;
2. Erected fencing around naturalized areas in locations of concern;
3. Increased signage warning of presence of coyotes in the area;
4. Removed some public garbage containers used for disposal of household garbage and ensured daily collection from remainder;
5. Public Notices, social media & website updates with information how to prevent & respond to coyote encounters;
6. Direct door to door information campaigns by MLE Officers to residents, schools and some businesses;
7. CWC conducted training on aversion conditioning techniques to Municipal Law Enforcement MLE Officers and community members;
8. MLE educated community members on aversion conditioning techniques;
9. Real time monitoring of sighting reports – MLE works with Service Oshawa to dispatch coyote sightings in an effort to conduct aversion conditioning.
It's important to recognize that COYOTES Are Part of the Urban Landscape in Ontario and across Canada. In fact there are benefits of co-existence in the environment, The City of Toronto has this e-learning link available for better understanding: https://www.toronto.ca/ext/digital_comm/mls/coyotes-in-the-urban-landscape/story_html5.html
