Yellow-bellied Marmots as Prey of Coyotes [Les marmottes à ventre jaune, proies des coyotes].

Résumé

Analysis of contents of 395 coyote (Canis latrans) scats collected for 6 yr at a subalpine locality in Colorado showed that yellow-bellied marmots (Marmota flaviventris) were a regular and frequent prey of coyotes during summer. There was no evidence that marmots were especially vulnerable to predation by coyotes during the mating season or during the time of dispersal. Marmots were most vulnerable to predation during July, for unknown reasons. Marmots apparently served as alternate prey of coyotes, marmot occurrence in scats was greatest during years when gophers, probably a preferred prey of coyotes, were infrequent in scats.