Trapper Connections

A main focus of our project revolves around outreach and communication with Ohio's public. We share our knowledge about coyotes, listen to public concerns, and ask a lot of questions about how people around the state are interacting with coyotes. All of this guides our research into coyote ecology and their impacts on livestock.

The Ohio State Trappers Association hosts a yearly convention - this year it was held in London, Ohio - where trappers from around the state come together to share news and updates, sell furs and trapping necessities, and learn from one another. This year, our coyote team had a table at the convention and team members Abby and Courtney shared information about the project. Trappers have contributed a large number of coyotes and samples for diet analysis from around the state. They're a very important part of our project! It was nice to meet with many new people, see some familiar faces, and chat about coyotes. As we move into the next phase of our project, we are looking to put GPS collars on live-trapped coyotes so we can learn more about their movement and behavior around livestock operations.

We also spread the word about our sister project, which is looking at gray fox around Ohio. Some information about that can be found here.