[rwhitman]

In eastern Los Angeles, coyotes are everywhere, to the point where in some areas you run into them constantly day or night. They're stealthy - silent and very calculating. You can tell many of them are part domestic dog and they don't seem phased by proximity to people and appear to understand the workings of the city to some extent. I have seen the mentioned looking both ways when crossing roads, and also use of sidewalks.

Coyotes are very good at not calling attention to themselves when needed. In fact I lived next to a den of them in LA for years and never heard a peep, despite seeing them staking me out from my neighbor's roof in broad daylight, testing the perimeters of my house more than a few times.

The thing is they're smarter than we give them credit, adapting to the man made environment and expand territory very quickly. We talk about controlling their population but they can parry - adeptly skilled at out-maneuvering people. Hold eye contact and you realize even though they look like a little dog, they're not your friend - they're studying you.

The speed at which they're expanding territory and where they're headed on the East coast now, is interesting. Growing up in southeastern Pennsylvania we never saw coyotes really, but in the last few years I'm hearing lots of stories about them from family. And now even here in NYC they're making an appearance as well.

The coyote / dog mix in LA seemed to not only have adapted to urban areas but use it to their advantage. Now add wolf to the mix and drop them in the environs of bountiful woodland and endless suburban sprawl of the eastern seaboard, what happens?

If an apex predator were to adapt into becoming an anthropocene survivor species, a prerequisite would be having intelligence enough to outwit humans. A species partly forged in human company, with increased intelligence, that uses our own environment as an advantage, and can hunt and eat us. Oh and reach full maturity in about a year. They may seem cute now, but give them a few generations and they might not be so cute any more.

[robbrown451]

If they are really as stealthy as you say, the last thing they will do is be aggressive toward humans.

From an evolutionary perspective, I can't imagine a worse strategy than hunting and eating humans.

[creshal]

> From an evolutionary perspective, I can't imagine a worse strategy than hunting and eating humans.

Being an aphrodisiac according to traditional Chinese medicine probably tops that.

[noir_lord]

That's true but they won't know that straight away, they aren't a threat to is in the long term (if they become a threat we'll just eradicate them) but in the short term it could be interesting.

[rwhitman]

The thing is, coyotes aren't aggressive. Or particularly destructive either. They have the benign appearance and demeanor of shy dogs. It would take a lot of effort to witness a coyote being violent. As prey, you'd likely never see a coyote being aggressive towards you until you're being jumped by the pack. So in most situations there's no evidence they are anything but cute and harmless. That's their adaptation.

[techterrier]

Surely the first thing an anthropocene apex predator species need to do is not attack humans? Doing so would inevitably lead to complete extermination?

[thedaemon]

I welcome our Coywolf overlords.

[beachstartup]

there are also quite a few in west LA, near the santa monica mountains. same with mountain lions.

it's a real concern for people with pets that stay outdoors.