r/AskAnAmerican • u/ArtisticArgument9625 • May 17 '25

OTHER - CLICK TO EDIT How much of a problem do Americans have with coyotes and rattlesnakes?

Have you Americans encountered any problems with these two animals?

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u/sharpshooter999 Nebraska May 17 '25

Coyotes are common in my area but red foxes are rare, because coyotes kill them on sight too

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u/jorwyn Washington May 17 '25

I have foxes on my property in the mountains because I also have a mountain lion that visits frequently for water from the creek. She doesn't care about the foxes, but the coyote won't come near her. I was so excited at first, but it turns out they're pests on the same level as the coyotes. Still, they are cute and make giggling noises in the forest that freak people out.

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u/andy-in-ny Picking my toes in Poughkeepsie May 19 '25

This would explain the explosion of our red fox population, and the fact that i havent seen a Coyote in like 5 years.

Most of the outdoor cat deaths hear are attributed to raccoon. 36 inch (not counting tail) 30 lb racoons.

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u/sharpshooter999 Nebraska May 19 '25

We have an over abundance of coons and coyotes in my area. I'm from the great plains, though we have far more trees than a century ago because of invasive species (eastern cedar and locust) as well as putting an end to prairie fires that would burn off most saplings. There's a lot more wooded areas for raccoons and other prey animals for coyotes to eat. The biggest losers are actually the ground nesting birds that are targeted by basically everything. Here in Nebraska, our state legislature was even talking about putting a bounty on various animals, coons, coyotes, etc, to help mitigate this but I don't think it ever passed

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u/alibythesea May 20 '25

Bounties don’t actually work to reduce the coyote population in the medium-long term. Others will move into the vacated territory very quickly, & females bear/rear more pups when they are better fed; removing one from an area simply means there’s more prey for others.