I may be opening up a can of worms here, but it's interesting (to me at least) the differing views toward coyotes in urban Orange County vs. rural Joshua Tree. In OC, people are up in arms when a coyote is sighted. When the occasional pet is killed by a coyote, people are outraged and demand that officials take action. This is a generalization of course, but it seems to be a common reaction. I'm not sure exactly what action the city takes (catch and release? euthanize?) and I'm not sure I want to know, but there are very few coyotes around. In the rural desert area of Joshua Tree, coyotes are accepted for what they are and their place in the food chain. People are very careful in the desert with their pets, but when one is killed by a coyote, people seem to accept it as a fact of desert life and move on.
I'm of the "live and let live" opinion. Not that I wouldn't be sad if my chihuahua gets picked off by a coyote, but killing the coyote for doing what comes naturally doesn't seem like the right solution. But that's just me. I'm curious to know what you think.
By the way, I didn't notice this until after I looked at the photo on my computer screen. Can you spot the squirrel? Funny to see all those rabbits surrounding a solitary squirrel!
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Yikes! That's a lot of rabbits. I agree with you about the coyotes.They are only doing what they do so that they can live.
ReplyDeleteWow that is a lot of rabbits and yes I do see the squirrel. Great picture!! It looks like it came out of a children's story book.
ReplyDeleteI agree with you too about the coyotes.
Wow, that is a lot of bunnies. Cute sighting and photo. Have a great day and weekend ahead!
ReplyDeleteScrewy Squirrel!!! Perfect for hanging around wascally wabbits. People move into an area then complain about the airport that's been there for 50 years, or the critters you'd naturally expect to see in the SouCal semi-arid places. We have coyotes up here--we hear them yelping from time to time, but rarely see one. Bears, cougars, deer, elk, rabbits, squirrels--- Live and let live. Everybody is somebody's dinner, unless you're an elephant, right?
ReplyDeleteoh, my word! you've had a rabbit bloom! yes, definitely a shortage of 'yotes in that area. :)
ReplyDeleteHubby and I were out walking in the golf course in Palm Desert last night and I heard a pack of 2-4 coyotes howling right across from where we had just hiked. I used to hike there in the mornings and would often see a coyote. One morning I saw 4 of them staring at me! I just ignored them and they ignored me, but people in Palm Springs have lost their dogs to coyotes and 2 women were bitten a few years ago. I respect them and they leave me alone...just sayin'...
ReplyDeleteI love it - such a vibrant photo and so full of life. Where I live there's also a constant push and pull between urbanization and wildlife (in our case it often means bears and mountain lions too).
ReplyDeleteFunny picture. I've never seen so many bunnies in one place. As for the coyotes, I guess I have the same view that you do. If I knew they were around where I live, I'd be very vigilant about my pets.
ReplyDeleteWow! That is a lot of rabbits! We have coyotes here, too, and I feel the same way that you do. I've lost cats to coyotes, but I can't blame the wild things. Now I have mostly indoor cats :)
ReplyDeleteCool shot!
ReplyDeleteI remember playing golf on a course near Las Vegas. There were rabbits (funny looking ones, I think jackrabbits) all over. And they were used to golfers, so they'd sit on the green while you were putting.
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Beautiful , Thanks for the post.
ReplyDeleteAmazing rabbits - plucky squirrel - guess it wanted its share of food.
ReplyDeleteWow, that is a lot of rabbits!
ReplyDeleteI agree, live and let live. We live in the country, so coyotes and friends abound. I love and appreciate all wildlife.
ReplyDeleteGreat post.. love the multitudes of bunnies!
Hello!:) This is an amazing photo of a rabbit herd, it almost looks like a story book picture, and it's so unusual for me to see so many rabbits in one place. The squirrel must have an identity crisis!!:) As for the coyote's,...I'm of the same opinion as yourself, keeping your pets safe is the way to go.
ReplyDeleteHad a look at your previous post, and loved taking a peek inside the cabin, and the ingenious way in which it was constructed. Great post!:)
Beautiful picture.
ReplyDeleteI have never seen so many rabbits in one place. They look exactly like the ones we have here. There are coyotes here in Pickering, Ontario Canada. Coyotes are spotted in and around our small city but not in large numbers. The Ministry of Natural Resources is responsible for addressing wildlife related issues within the province of Ontario. They recommend if you see a coyote, wolf or fox, keep your distance and the animal will most likely avoid you.
ReplyDeleteLove this shot of so many rabbits and the imposter!
ReplyDeleteWow that are a lot rabbits indeed.
ReplyDeleteThat is a lot of rabbits!
ReplyDeleteHere in rural Mississippi, we sometimes hear coyotes at night, but I have not seen one in a long time.
We see a few rabbits come into our yard when our dog is taking a nap!
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ReplyDeleteThis is great! Almost all of the rabbits and the squirrel are headed in the same direction. Just two or three going the opposite way! Isn't that like life? We have coyotes very close to our home also. At night they sound like they are surrounding us-yikes. They often awaken with their eerie high pitched screams. I know some around hunt them, but not us. Thanks for sharing.
ReplyDeleteSweet shots. I'm with you on the live and let live philosophy.
ReplyDeleteI'm what you might call a rabid critter lover. I think we should hand out rifles to all the critters who've had their habitat stolen. Open season, I say. Yeah. I worry about my dogs getting too close to gators at our nearby river here in Florida, but the gators were here first...and, well, maybe I should keep my canines in the back yard.
ReplyDeleteI am in total agreement with you. I also have a healthy population of jack rabbits near home but only half as many if that much than you've pictured here. They are fun to watch frolicking about. Now as for the squirrels - tree rats, they are fair game. Pests best seen elsewhere. Your post title makes me think of Elmer Fudd singing "Kill the wabbit, kill the wabbit" to the tune of Wagner's opera.
ReplyDeleteI would be completely crushed if a coyote got one of my babies and the smaller of the two Teddy Bear dogs is ripe for the taking. Coyotes have been a big problem around here, especially last spring. I wouldn't hesitate to blow the critter into oblivion damn the consequences if it was after a pet. They might be doing what they do but because they're getting cramped and cornered. Doesn't change the fact if the choice is between a coyote and a pet the pet will win in my book every time.
ReplyDeleteLove the photo, that squirrel is indeed surrounded.
I would be completely crushed if a coyote got one of my babies and the smaller of the two Teddy Bear dogs is ripe for the taking. Coyotes have been a big problem around here, especially last spring. I wouldn't hesitate to blow the critter into oblivion damn the consequences if it was after a pet. They might be doing what they do but because they're getting cramped and cornered. Doesn't change the fact if the choice is between a coyote and a pet the pet will win in my book every time.
ReplyDeleteLove the photo, that squirrel is indeed surrounded.
Strange that the squirrel and rabbits appear to be eating the same food!
ReplyDeleteOh yeah, we have coyotes here in Tulsa occasionally. Big healthy looking ones who I think have a steady diet of dogs and cats, and rabbits!
ReplyDeleteNow that's alot of rabbits!
ReplyDeleteWe have quite a few city coyotes out this way but so far no problems in my yard. Mutual respect, I say.
Ha, the squirrel is trying to blend in! We have a coyote dilemma in Virginia too. There is a bounty in rural area, but hardly anyone hunts them. Folks are busy commuting to the city. We have a bigger problem with bears in the towns! A woman was injured when she tried to protect her dog by kicking the bear!
ReplyDeleteOk, that's a lot or rabbits! Very cool!
ReplyDeleteI am in agreement with you. And, I did notice the squirrel but not till you pointed it out.
ReplyDeleteWow, and I am glad when I see one rabbit here! I love your photo.In our country we haven't coyotes. But now we have one wolf in the Netherlands and everyone is excited about that fact ;-)
ReplyDeletewow, this is fun. Are they kept in or out?
ReplyDeleteI did notice the squirrel! Maybe he thinks the rabbits are just relatives with glandular problems, ha ha. We have lot of coyotes up here, as well as black bears and mountain lions. Most people up here know to keep their pets inside. We don't see a lot of rabbits up here...probably because of the aforementioned predators.
ReplyDeleteMy that was a bunch of rabbits...they do multiply! - Fun shot with the squirrel there.
ReplyDeleteI really enjoy coming across wild bunnies -- they always seem to do quite well in spite of pretty much being the bottom of the food chain (although I've actually never seen as many in one small area as you show). Fertility as per all the old sayings I guess. I agree with you about live and let live and not killing wild animals for doing what they are supposed to do by nature. We have already disrupted the natural order of things enough. In my opinion, admittedly completely unscientific, the first people to complain about nature are those who have built McMansions to 'get away' to exclusive compounds where it used to be open land.
ReplyDeleteSaw a FB recently that a Coywolf (was that the word) was spotted nearby. Apparently, around here at least, dogs have been interbreeding with coyotes or wolves or whatever. (This is me belatedly returning your comment on my blog. Occasionally I lose my way.)
ReplyDeleteWow! Nice capture,a field of rabbits!
ReplyDeleteI don't think a coyote should be punished or killed for doing what comes naturally. I have a cat and he is an indoor cat, and neutered. I don't let him out because I live in a huge city (Montreal), and I have no garden or place where he can wander safely, so he stays indoors and is very happy with this and used to it, as I have had him since he was a kitten and it is all he has ever known. I think owners should take responsibility for their own pets and, if they choose to let their pet run free, unsupervised, and without a leash or collar and a coyote (or any other animal) kills it, in my view, it is the owner's fault, as they set the scenario for it to happen.
ReplyDeleteI don't think a coyote should be punished or killed for doing what comes naturally. I have a cat and he is an indoor cat, and neutered. I don't let him out because I live in a huge city (Montreal), and I have no garden or place where he can wander safely, so he stays indoors and is very happy with this and used to it, as I have had him since he was a kitten and it is all he has ever known. I think owners should take responsibility for their own pets and, if they choose to let their pet run free, unsupervised, and without a leash or collar and a coyote (or any other animal) kills it, in my view, it is the owner's fault, as they set the scenario for it to happen.
ReplyDeleteOoohhh what a cute capture!
ReplyDeleteWe have the same issues where I live (same county, but about 25 miles away). We have a lot of rabbits, and also a lot of coyotes. Just about every one of my neighbors that has pets, has had their dog/cat attacked, or killed by coyotes. EVERYBODY here knows that the coyotes are always looking for pets in the late afternoon, and morning. If you just let your dog go outside alone, there's a good chance it will attacked. Even if you go outside with it, there is still a chance. There is never just one coyote on the prowl here, there are always at least 2, or 3. One distracts the human, while another goes for the pet. Outside cats only last a couple of days. Everybody talks about it, the city and county won't do anything, because they (like many of us) agree that we are the ones infringing on the coyote's territory. Unless a human is hurt by a coyote, they won't do anything. Every so often they do a mailing to every address warning them about coyotes, and what to do to keep their pets alive. A lot of folks think that if they aren't killed, they should at least be relocated. Relocation isn't allowed by the state, because it only moves the problem. So if they do something, the only option is to kill them. Unless there are extreme circumstances involved, they won't kill them either. It's a proven fact, that if you kill coyotes, they increase their breeding rate. If there are too many Coyotes for the available food sources, they slow down their breeding. They are amazingly adept at surviving in almost any area, and under almost all circumstances. It's interesting that you hardly ever see coyotes that have been hit by motor vehicles. If you ever have a chance watch how they do it. The look both ways (more than once) to make sure they can cross the road safely.
ReplyDeleteMy wife runs the Facebook page for our town, and just like you said in your post, people can get very passionate about this issue. Great post!