Coyote sightings are up in the Boise Foothills. Here’s how to stay safe on trails
Each spring, the coyotes that call the Boise Foothills home bring litters of new pups into the world. And each spring, more and more Foothills trail users report interactions with the wild canines, from sightings to more aggressive encounters with assertive adult coyotes defending their dens.
On Wednesday, Ridge to Rivers posted a reminder on its daily Facebook trails report urging hikers and mountain bikers to be on the lookout for coyotes and give them a wide berth. The agency, which manages more than 200 miles of trails around Boise, said it has received numerous reports of sightings in popular trail areas including Hulls Gulch, Military Reserve and Table Rock.
Sara Arkle, Foothills and open space superintendent for the city of Boise, said the spate of sightings in recent years is probably a symptom of increased trail use, not of a larger coyote population.
“I think wildlife was always doing their thing, but now that there’s more people, there’s a potential for more conflict,” Arkle said in a phone interview. “We’ve seen an extreme amount of increased visitation in the Foothills over the last year.”
One person commented on the Ridge to Rivers post and said she and her dogs were barked at by a coyote in the distance recently. Arkle said she has seen videos of trail users’ dogs interacting with the coyotes. Fortunately, she said, there have not been reports of a coyote bite or attack, though a denning coyote bit an off-leash dog in the Foothills as recently as 2019.
“The worst-case scenario is we have a dog bit or we have a person bit,” Arkle said. “I don’t want to have to go and call Fish and Game to intervene, because wildlife will pay the price.”
Ridge to Rivers is urging trail users to leash dogs when they’re in areas with known coyote dens, particularly Hulls Gulch, Table Rock, and the Kestral and Military Reserve Connection trail intersection.
“Having folks place their dogs on-leash is potentially a minor inconvenience, but it’s a cool thing to have to do — the reason you’re doing it is because there are coyote pups and parents preserving the safety of their pups,” Arkle said. “I think most people would agree that the wildlife interactions we can have, if we preserve those environments for native species, it’s so meaningful.”
She said the agency is trying to be more proactive about informing trail users of the coyotes’ presence, including posting signs at trailheads where the animals have been spotted.
Arkle also said coyotes may be getting more used to humans as trail use increases.
“There’ve been a couple of very resilient coyotes that den in pretty popular sites,” she said. “We’re trying to get folks to understand that these creatures try to raise their young and live their lives. We are visiting.”
If you encounter an aggressive coyote, contact the Idaho Department of Fish and Game’s Southwest Region office at (208) 465-8465.
This story was originally published April 21, 2021 at 1:00 PM.
