Home

Coyotes kill Hiker in Cape Breton.

Posted By: Mira Trapper

Coyotes kill Hiker in Cape Breton. - 10/28/09 01:30 PM

By CBC News, cbc.ca, Updated: October 28, 2009 8:42 AM Coyotes kill woman in Cape Breton

A 19-year-old woman has died after being attacked by two coyotes in Cape Breton Highlands National Park.

The RCMP confirm the woman died overnight at the QEII Health Sciences Centre in Halifax.

The woman was hiking on the Skyline Trail when she was attacked Tuesday afternoon. She was taken to the hospital in Cheticamp, then airlifted to Halifax in critical condition.

Park superintendent Helene Robichaud said the victim, believed to be from the Toronto area, was walking the trail alone.

She said other hikers managed to scare off the coyotes and call 911.

An RCMP officer shot at one of the animals, but couldn't find the body. Robichaud said park staff put down a coyote overnight and were looking for a second one.

"We're continuing our exercise on the trail," she told CBC News Wednesday morning.

Wildlife biologist Bob Bancroft said this kind of attack is extremely rare and he's never heard of such a serious case in Nova Scotia.

He said coyotes, which are normally up to 50 pounds, are usually very shy, though they can be bold.

"In situations like a national park [where] usually there's no hunting and no trapping allowed, they can get used to a human presence and not have much fear of any retribution," Bancroft told CBC News.

It's unclear what happened in the woods on Tuesday.

Bancroft said it's possible the hiker didn't even realize what was happening.

"They may have snuck up on her and knocked her over before she even knew what happened," he said. "They may have been youngsters. They just may not have had a lot of experience or they may have just capitalized on a situation where a young person was acting vulnerable and very frightened by their presence."

He said there's a slight possibility that the animals had rabies.

Bancroft had his own run-in with a coyote several years ago when he was alone in the woods.

"A coyote came straight at me. It happened very, very quickly. It stopped and I just stood my ground, I didn't act," he said. "It actually regrouped and charged again. And I think the fact that I didn't act like a prey item convinced it to leave me alone."

Bancroft advises hikers to be alert and leave their iPods at home. He also suggests carrying a knife.

The Skyline Trail has been closed and barricaded.

External Links

Cape Breton Highlands National Park of Canada

And the ARA want these animals protected despite the obvious risks to humans and other animals. In fact the coyotes here have pretty much decimated the deer herds of Cape Breton Island. They caused the extinction of deer on Scaterie Island off Cape Breton's Coast which had a medium number of 150 deer for at least 100 years. They have adversely affected the ability of other predators such as Lynx &,Bobcat & Foxes to survive. Coyote/hybrid wolfs kill other predators and chase them from their kills which causes starvation within the ranks of the animals that coyotes steal from.
Posted By: bullgetter

Re: Coyotes kill Hiker in Cape Breton. - 10/28/09 01:41 PM

Exactly. Park dogs with no fear of man.
Posted By: white17

Re: Coyotes kill Hiker in Cape Breton. - 10/28/09 02:21 PM

But whatever you do, do carry a pistol! Perfect example of another 'gun-free' zone.
Posted By: Mira Trapper

Re: Coyotes kill Hiker in Cape Breton. - 10/28/09 02:45 PM

Originally Posted By: white17
But whatever you do, do carry a pistol! Perfect example of another 'gun-free' zone.





How quaint. Carry a knife as a 19 year old kid into a park where there is open season for all the animals to attack humans but not vice versa, even if you are on the menu. I found Bancroft's CONJECTURE to be so off the wall that the Park must be serving Pablum to it's wild life experts.
Posted By: Shawn Martin

Re: Coyotes kill Hiker in Cape Breton. - 10/28/09 02:50 PM

and the anti think that they r some nice animals.... yeah right
Posted By: Anonymous

Re: Coyotes kill Hiker in Cape Breton. - 10/28/09 02:52 PM

This throws petas coexist theory right in the toilet
Posted By: Drifter

Re: Coyotes kill Hiker in Cape Breton. - 10/28/09 03:03 PM

Pack a knife to defend yourself aginst a coyote attack is as stupid as the toss bean bags at them like the California folks have been coached to do.

You can bet you won't see anything about it in our media.

Drifter
Posted By: beachcomber13

Re: Coyotes kill Hiker in Cape Breton. - 10/28/09 03:09 PM

Good point, Drifter. I'd like to see anyone try to fend off four German Shepards with a knife.

Kinda shows a little favor towards hunting and trapper.
Posted By: Weasel_Trapper

Re: Coyotes kill Hiker in Cape Breton. - 10/28/09 03:30 PM

http://www.cbc.ca/canada/nova-scotia/story/2009/10/28/ns-coyote-attack-died.html

You have to read some of the comments left by some of the tree huggers & animal lovers from this article.
Posted By: Mira Trapper

Re: Coyotes kill Hiker in Cape Breton. - 10/28/09 04:52 PM

http://www.myspace.com/taylormitchellband

So sad that such a talent would die so tragically and there are folks that are so removed from nature that they think humans shouldn't be in the woods. How did main stream society get to be so removed from Nature and think that we don't belong in the woods ?
Posted By: Actor

Re: Coyotes kill Hiker in Cape Breton. - 10/28/09 05:47 PM

This is only the beginning ... in five years the number of attacks and death will astonish most people ... mark my word.

Garry-
Posted By: Mira Trapper

Re: Coyotes kill Hiker in Cape Breton. - 10/28/09 06:05 PM

Originally Posted By: Actor
This is only the beginning ... in five years the number of attacks and death will astonish most people ... mark my word.

Garry-




Strangely supported by the Book of Bible known as : Revelations:




Revelation 6:8
English: King James Version (1611) - KJV
8 And I looked, and behold a pale horse: and his name that sat on him was Death, and [Please excuse my language... I'm an idiot] followed with him. And power was given unto them over the fourth part of the earth, to kill with sword, and with hunger, and with death, and with the beasts of the earth. unto them: or, to him




Just in the last Century we felt like this Earth was ours to Rule over those beasts. However , we have ALLOWED the Humanists to take our strengths over those animals from us. We are now in the business of re-introducing & protecting our worst enemies in the animal kingdom. Our God has warned us but many do not believe. BTW this Horseman "The 4th horseman," empowers wild animals to attack humans as part of the 4th Seal Judgment.
Posted By: Mira Trapper

Re: Coyotes kill Hiker in Cape Breton. - 10/28/09 06:08 PM

Strange how God points out LLLLL as a real place but we are restricted to {PLease excuse my language ,I am an idiot}. If more folks understood the gates of Hades they might avoid them at all costs.
Posted By: Anonymous

Re: Coyotes kill Hiker in Cape Breton. - 10/28/09 06:16 PM

That came word for word from the movie Pale Rider !
Posted By: Mira Trapper

Re: Coyotes kill Hiker in Cape Breton. - 10/28/09 06:27 PM

Originally Posted By: canvasback
That came word for word from the movie Pale Rider !



Then Pale Rider STOLE the words from the Greatest Book ever Written. Not the first time the Bible Themes were stolen though.
Posted By: Mira Trapper

Re: Coyotes kill Hiker in Cape Breton. - 10/28/09 06:38 PM

Originally Posted By: martentrappah
(While this young woman's death was truly unfortunate, I hope this news item -- and the way it's being promoted -- does not produce an anti-coyote backlash.

These gentle, shy animals have too long suffered at the hands of men. )

this is one of the comments those PETA freaks are writting about this



Makes me want to adopt one to baby sit my children. Actually they have had several incidents of attacks in that Park. Seems the Park is more interested in playing down the danger then telling the whole truth. A person in a wheel chair was attacked a few years ago. A man on a bicycle was also chased and was saved by a passing motorist. I am sure more attacks happened but were ignored or pushed to the sidelines.
Posted By: Anonymous

Re: Coyotes kill Hiker in Cape Breton. - 10/28/09 06:40 PM

Originally Posted By: Mira Trapper
Originally Posted By: canvasback
That came word for word from the movie Pale Rider !



Then Pale Rider STOLE the words from the Greatest Book ever Written. Not the first time the Bible Themes were stolen though.



This topic brings back the time when a Preacher went to get a permit to build a huge addition on to their place. Wanted to hold over 1 Thousand people in it. Well, the subject of how he was going to pay for such a huge project came up. He said..

" God will provide."


To this day, I still remember the exact words that I said to him . I said


" God may provide , but God doesn't pay the bills !! "
Posted By: Mira Trapper

Re: Coyotes kill Hiker in Cape Breton. - 10/28/09 06:51 PM

He paid my bills on the Cross and I am so grateful that I do help to build His Church. The key is motivation & Revelations points out the return of nature stalking men, certainly adds fuel to knowing He left us Prophecy to let us know His plan is constant.
Posted By: Mira Trapper

Re: Coyotes kill Hiker in Cape Breton. - 10/29/09 10:42 PM

http://thechronicleherald.ca/Front/1150025.html


As I noted earlier. These coyotes are more Wolf then Coyote according to DNA genetics testing. 25 kilograms or 50 lbs of ravenous hunger on four legs.

Biologists baffled by attack

By IAN FAIRCLOUGH and EVA HOARE Staff Reporters
Thu. Oct 29 - 4:46 AM

[Coyotes are typically shy and elusive, and tend to run away rather than attack humans, wildlife experts says.(AP)</p>]

Coyotes are typically shy and elusive, and tend to run away rather than attack humans, wildlife experts says.(AP)

COYOTES IN NOVA SCOTIA:

As coyotes spread eastward across North America they mixed with the red or eastern wolf, says wildlife biologist Jon Way. That created a cross that he calls a coywolf. DNA studies show that all the animals in the eastern part of Canada and the United States have wolf as part of their genetic makeup. The animals here are about five kilograms heavier on average than the coyote of the western part of the continent, weighing 16 kilograms with males sometimes reaching 25 kilograms.
FAST FACTS

•First recorded in Nova Scotia in 1977

•Coyotes often mate for life, and have five to seven pups in late April

•Top speed of 55 km/h, and can bound five metres

•Main prey is snowshoe hares and white-tailed deer, either live or dead. They also eat insects, blueberries, apples, mice, porcupines, woodchucks and garbage

Source: Nova Scotia Department

of Natural Resources



The coyote attack Tuesday that killed Taylor Mitchell is rare on many levels, say wildlife scientists, including one who studied the animals in Nova Scotia for four years.

"This event is unprecedented," said Brent Patterson, who followed radio-collared coyotes in Kejimkujik National Park and River Denys, Cape Breton, in the 1990s as part of his master’s degree research.

"It’s very atypical of coyotes anywhere. We may at the end of all of this, despite any investigation, never have the answer as to why this happened," said Mr. Patterson, who’s an adjunct professor at Trent University in Ontario.

Jon Way, who runs Eastern Coyote Research in Massachusetts and has studied the animals for 12 years, says the fact a human was attacked is rare enough, but other elements make it even more so.

"I don’t think they regard people, even kids, as an opportunity for a food source, so this is certainly an abnormal attack," Mr. Way said. "They certainly are not like (big) cats that regard people as food, they just don’t do that."

The fact the incident happened in a sparsely populated area is also curious because coyotes tend to run at the first sign of humans in the wild, he said.

His studies in eastern Massachusetts involve animals that have a lot of interaction with humans because of heavy development.

"There are certainly interactions, but by and large the danger from these guys is at the bottom of the radar screen of dangerous things in your neighbourhood," Mr. Way said, adding this attack is "certainly a puzzle."

Mr. Patterson agreed. "It’s very rare for coyotes to attack a healthy adult."

He doubted that either animal involved in the attack was diseased because if they were sick, it would be unlikely the two would travel together.

An ill coyote generally "snaps" at others and "retreats," he said.

Rabies is a possibility, Mr. Way said, but two coyotes being involved in the mauling makes him question that.

"The first thing I thought with two animals is ‘wow, that’s bizarre,’ which is why I’m a little nervous to say ‘yeah, it’s a sick animal,’ " he said.

Mr. Patterson said it’s important to find out whether there has been any "habituation" of the creatures; in other words, people feeding the animals that has led them to lose their fear of humans.

The fear needs to be put back into them, said the scientist. Authorities should be checking whether there have been any instances of people handing or putting out food for the animals. And any carcasses authorities find should also be examined to see if food scraps are found among stomach contents, he said.

"Overall the habituation factor is something to avoid, because then all of a sudden they start to associate humans with food," Mr. Way said. "An animal might be having a bad day, and if it’s used to getting food might get (annoyed) if it can’t find any."

But it would take a lot of interaction between coyotes and people before humans would be regarded as prey, he said.

"I really question if they were looking at her as food. This has never happened before, so it would take a lot more interaction for any type of coyote . . . to think of people as food.

"These animals have lived around people in the northeast (United States) for 75 years, and if they wanted to attack people, it could happen anywhere at any time."

Mr. Way has never seen coyotes guard a food source or den from humans, and at this time of year pups are out of the den anyway. Habituated animals in urban areas could attack if they were trying to protect a food source, or if they felt cornered, he said.

Mr. Patterson, who tracked coyotes here from 1993 to ’97, said autumn is the worst time for them and they’re generally the skinniest at this time. Their populations usually rise and fall with the prevalence of snowshoe hares, their primary food source.

Until Tuesday’s attack, there had only been one other recorded human death in North America from a coyote attack. That was in 1981 when a three-year-old girl was attacked in her yard in California, where attacks in suburban areas have increased in the past decade.

Mr. Way has spent 12 years tracking 50 animals that are wearing radio collars.

"I get on my hands and knees trying to get close to observe them, to get video and pictures, and the first thing that happens, when any of them smell me or sense me, is they run in the opposite direction, even if they don’t quite know what I am," he said.

"They overall do a pretty amazing job of avoiding us. There are very few animals in most areas that are seen as problems that might attack people."

Both he and Mr. Patterson said it’s obviously best to observe any such animal from a safe distance.

If they are acting bold or aggressive and approaching you, clap your hands, make yourself appear as big as possible, or throw rocks to get them to go the other way, the scientists said.

As you would with bears, do not turn your back on the animal, Mr. Patterson said. Back away and "don’t take your eyes off the animal," he said.

He said to be mindful of certain cues the animal will give, including a bristling of the hair at the shoulders and obviously growls.

"You’ll know it when you see it."

( ifairclough@herald.ca)

( ehoare@herald.ca)
Posted By: Ridgerunner

Re: Coyotes kill Hiker in Cape Breton. - 10/29/09 10:51 PM

It happens...such is life...and death...Wild Animals don;t follow Obama's rules..
Posted By: Mira Trapper

Re: Coyotes kill Hiker in Cape Breton. - 10/30/09 02:31 AM

There is something else that should be noted about this scenario. Over the last number of years confrontations have increased although the coyotes haven't killed anyone before. However,people walking dogs have had them killed right in front of the owners. Folks working in the woods have had to start their chain saws to protect themselves while eating their lunches. They have also killed a lot of livestock over the years in some areas and yet not even harmed a hair on animals in other locations. Seems each pack has a different personality.
Posted By: Bogdonkey

Re: Coyotes kill Hiker in Cape Breton. - 10/31/09 05:42 AM

Originally Posted By: Ridgerunner
It happens...such is life...and death...Wild Animals don;t follow Obama's rules..


Bahahahaha... awesome.

Pretty girl like that shouldn't be hiking alone. frown
Posted By: barkspud

Re: Coyotes kill Hiker in Cape Breton. - 10/31/09 09:47 AM

I think a few good points and tips have been missed here. One is I have had several dogs in my life. Everyone is different and some never raised a hair in ther life. With everyone have had there always seems to be one person they don't like. For what ever reason I never understood. Always seemed to be shy well manered people too. Why wouldn't yotes be the same and they are a wild anmals. Two if you enter the wild you should be prepaired for anything. Three if a animals approach you or seems like it may. Find something to defend your self right then. If you wait till it appraoches it could be to late. I to have had yotes and bears both size me up they are not as shy as they seem. Most of them didn't make it I was prepaired. Thats to bad that had to happen. It will get twisted and blame us sportsman some how.
Posted By: Mira Trapper

Re: Coyotes kill Hiker in Cape Breton. - 11/02/09 12:53 AM

Originally Posted By: Baer
Originally Posted By: Ridgerunner
It happens...such is life...and death...Wild Animals don;t follow Obama's rules..


Bahahahaha... awesome.

Pretty girl like that shouldn't be hiking alone. frown





Apparently she was not alone at the time she was being finished off by the coyotes who are better described as Hybrid wolves. I wondered why the RCMP were able to kill one and wound the other coyote. The more evolved story which the press didn't want to print because of the graphic death completes the picture and is much worse then we originally heard.




Apparently the people that called 911 for help heard her screams and ran to the scene. They then stood by and watched as the coyotes finished her off . The coyotes then began to devour her after ripping open both her eyes and severing her leg from her body at the hip joint. Apparently the lookers on were to AFRAID to help her. They waited for the RCMP to arrive a good 30 to 40 minutes later. That is why the RCMP,were able to plug one of the coyotes feeding on her body. I am ashamed to think folks could actually stand and watch such a thing without trying to chase the animals off the girl. Apparently the RCMP even got a second shot off and thinks he might have wounded the second animal. That tells you how aggressive they must have been if the second one didn't run away when the first one was shot.
© 2024 Trapperman Forums