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Your moment of squee! This adorable coyote was spotted and filmed by Wolf Conservation Center Executive Director Maggie Howell in New York's Westchester County on May 10, 2020. What's an eastern Coyote? The coyote (Canis latrans) is a species of canine native to North America. It is smaller than its close relative, the gray wolf, and slightly smaller than the closely related eastern wolf and red wolf. Eastern coyotes can be larger than their western counterparts because eastern coyotes are hybrids - the result of an amazing evolution story unfolding right underneath our noses. Over the years these dynamic canids have acquired a number of nicknames. Both “Coywolf“ and “Coydog” have been growing in popularity; however, the majority of the scientific community prefer the less flashy moniker: “Eastern Coyote.” It's no surprise that “wolf“ and “dog“ have been woven into the identity of wild canids in the region, as current science indicates a number of species are represented within the genome of the eastern coyote. Ecologist and evolutionary biologist Javier Monzón, previously at Stony Brook University in New York, now at Pepperdine University in California, analyzed the DNA of 437 eastern coyotes and found the genes contain all three canids -- dog, wolf and coyote. According to Monzón's research, about 64% of the eastern coyote's genome is coyote (Canis latrans), 13% gray wolf (Canis lupus), 13% Eastern wolf (Canis lycaon), and 10% dog (Canis familiaris). Sounds like a recipe for canis soup! Learn more about eastern coyotes and how best to coexist: Located in South Salem, New York, the Wolf Conservation Center is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit environmental education organization committed to conserving wolf populations in North America through science-based education programming and participation in the federal Species Survival Plans for the critically endangered Mexican gray wolf and red wolf. Through wolves, the WCC teaches the broader message of conservation, ecological balance, and personal responsibility for improved human stewardship of our World. For more information about wolves and the WCC's participation in wolf recovery, please visit and follow the WCC on Facebook () and Twitter (), and Instagram ()
