Date of Award

12-2013

Document Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

Legacy Department

Wildlife and Fisheries Biology

Committee Chair/Advisor

Dr. Greg Y. Yarrow

Committee Member

Dr. JIm Armstrong

Committee Member

Dr. Robert Baldwin

Committee Member

Dr. Patrick Gerard

Committee Member

Dr. Patrick Jodice

Abstract

Recent coyote (Canis latrans ) colonization of the southeastern United States has prompted speculation on the top-down effects of a new top predator on systems which have gone without a strong predator presence since the extirpation of the red wolf (Canis rufus ). This dissertation reports on the results of a series of investigations of the potential impact of coyotes on raccoons (Procyon lotor ) and other management issues related to coyotes in the Southeast. Chapters 1-3 present indirect field tests of the Mesopredator Release Hypothesis. Chapter 4 presents an overview of the current knowledge of the ecology and potential impacts of coyotes in the Southeast.

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