Analyze and interpret data to provide evidence for the effects of resource availability on organisms and populations of organisms in an ecosystem.
Do coyotes feed on other animals or insects that homeowners consider to be favorable or unfavorable in their neighborhood? If coyotes establish a new territory, how might they impact the population of prey species? What role do you think regulated hunting and trapping of coyotes could play in maintaining prey populations? How do you think wildlife biologists confirm what coyotes are consuming?
What can you learn from each of the charts on the Visualization Tool? Write a summary based on the data represented in the charts. Create your own chart of something you observe about coyotes on the Visualization Tool or gather from the available data download. How are charts helpful to scientists and non-scientists?
Look at the characeristics of the land the coyotes utilize. Are there areas they tend to avoid or use more frequently? Why do you think that is? Can you identify "travel corridors" through which the coyotes frequently move? For a given week, what percentage of coyote locations are in the open as comparied to those in wooded or sheltered areas?