Jrbhunter

Sounds like you've got plenty of coyotes out there!

I believe all K-9's can produce runts, but in the wild a runt is usually the first to die... weather that's at 3 weeks of age or 5 months, life is harder on them iftheir small stature makes them unable tocompete for food. Weather it be mother's milk or meat from a carcass, at some point that weakness in a fight could starve them.

In the West, coyotes are documented to den within close proximity of each other. They also may share dens, and I've even read where one male may empregnate two females who raise their young together.

In the East, this is unheard of... territorialism is a major factor in coyote behavior East of the Mississippi River and the whole "lets just get along" theory doesn't apply so well. Dens within territorial ranges are unacceptable and will quickly result in murdered pups and brutal fights between adults. With the liberal and socialists behavior seen in coyotes of the West, I wouldn't be surprised if the first pup you saw was from an entirely seperate family group. But anything is possible.


PS: The maternal instincts of a coyote run on a fairly limited schedule. If 6 pups were weened and eating solid food, while 1 still required nursing and cleaning, I don't think it would be uncommon for the female to kill that pup and move on. Adult females have beendocumented killing their own offspring at 6-8 months of age if they show signs of weakness (like stuck in a trap, or wounded). She perceieves her job as a mother to birth them and get them on solid food... after that, they are another mouth to compete with in a harsh world. I believe family values are very shallow in the coyote world.