Species: Coyote (Canis latrans); Gray wolf (Canis lupus)

What to look for

  1. Size first. A gray wolf measures up to 6 feet including the tail and stands about 30 inches (76 cm) at the shoulder, with females near 70 to 80 pounds and males 95 to 100 pounds.
  2. A coyote is a 39 to 54 inch (99 to 137 cm) animal weighing 18 to 30 pounds, and 10 to 16 inches (25 to 41 cm) of that length is tail.
  3. Ears. Shorter and more rounded on a wolf; longer and more pointed on a coyote, whose ear backs are reddish.
  4. Muzzle. Broad and blocky on a wolf; narrower and yellowish on a coyote.
  5. Tail. Shorter and bushier on a wolf. A coyote's is colored like its back, usually black tipped and whitish below near the base.
  6. Tracks. A wolf track runs about 5 inches long by 4 inches wide (13 by 10 cm), with four symmetrical toes, clear claws and a single lobe at the front of the foot pad. A coyote's is about half that size.

Easily confused with

Domestic dog. Even the largest dog breeds usually leave tracks smaller than a wolf's, and a wolf's trail runs a direct, purposeful line where a dog's meanders. Human tracks alongside settle it.

Coyote tracks in a dog-walking area. Coyote prints overlap because the animal walks in its own footprints and fall 18 to 22 inches apart. Medium dog tracks do not overlap and fall 6 to 8 inches apart.

Where and when

Coyotes are the canid most people meet: semi-open brushy country, timber edges and open farmland, active mainly between sunset and sunrise but often seen in daylight. Wolves occupy far less of the map. Washington, for one, treats its gray wolves as a recovering species and publishes a dedicated identification page, which tells you how routinely the two get mixed up where their ranges meet.

Related signs

  • Coyote vs fox: A coyote outweighs a red fox two or three times over: 18 to 30 pounds against 7.5 to 15 pounds.
  • Coyote tracks: A coyote track is a compact oval about 2.5 inches long and 2 inches wide, with four toes and toenail marks that nearly always print.
  • Wolf tracks: A wolf track is about 5 inches long by 4 inches wide, with four symmetrical toes, claws that clearly register, and a single lobe at the front of the foot pad.

Sources