Predators

Gehrt, Stanley D., Seth P.D. Riley, and Brian L. Cypher, Editors.  2010.  Urban Carnivores: Ecology, Conflict, and Conservation.  Baltimore, MD: The John Hopkins University Press.

If you only read one book on predators, I would highly recommend this one.  It covers:

• • stray and feral cats and dogs
  • potential predators of lost pets such as coyotes, foxes, bobcats, and mountain lions, but unfortunately not fishers.
  • potential nuisance wildlife when using feeding stations or trapping such as raccoons and skunks.

Coyotes

Research Websites

Eastern Coyote Research: researcher Jonathan Way has been studying coyotes in Massachusetts for over 10 years.

Project Coyote: includes a downloadable book, Coyotes in Our Midst, on understanding and coexisting with coyotes.

The Cooke County, Illinois, Coyote Project: research on coyotes in the Chicago metropolitan area.

Also don’t forget all the coyote articles on the Lost Pet Research Blog.

If you have ever had a companion animal attacked by a coyote, please consider filling out this short survey.

Books

Cartaino, Carol.  2010.  Myths & Truths About Coyotes.  Menasha Ridge Press.  –  A very comprehensive yet easy-to-read book including almost everything you ever wanted to know about coyotes.  Personally, I think the author is overly grim in her assessment of coyote risk to cats, but in general it is a rather unbiased account of coyote behavior.

Clark, Timothy W., A. Peyton Curlee, Steven C. Minta, and Peter Kareiva, editors.  1999.  Carnivores in Ecosystems: The Yellowstone Experience.  Yale University Press.  – This book includes a really good chapter on coyote behavior in Yellowstone.  The Yellowstone coyotes are possibly the most easily observed coyotes in the US, so this provides some of the best research on their social behavior.

Way, Johnathan.  2007.  Suburban Howls: Tracking the Eastern Coyote in Urban Massachusetts.  Dog Ear Publishing.  – Written by coyote researcher, Jonathan Way, about his 10 years of research on Massachusetts coyotes.

Trout Jr., John.  2001.  Solving Coyote Problems: How to Coexist with North America’s Most Persistent Predator, Lyons Press – This book appears well researched and contains some good information both lethal and non-lethal methods of managing problem coyotes.  My only criticism is the lack of actual references so you can’t check the sources of his information.

These are some other good research-based books on coyotes, but they are somewhat out-of-date.  The Eastern Coyote was last published in 1995, and Bekoff’s work on coyotes was first published in 1978.

Parker, Gerry.  1995.  Eastern Coyote: The Story of Its Success.  Nimbus Publishing.

Bekoff, Mark.  2001.  Coyotes: Biology, Behavior and Management.  The Blackburn Press.

Bobcats

Books

Hansen, Kevin.  2006.  Bobcat: Master of Survival.  Oxford University Press. – This is a fairly comprehensive, research-based book on bobcat biology and behavior.

Fishers

Websites

I haven’t yet found any good research websites on fishers.  However, these popular websites provide a decent overview of its biology and behavior.

Wikipedia

Fisher Cat Screech

Also don’t forget my article: Fisher Cat Screech – Real or Urban Legend?

If you have ever had a companion animal attacked by a fisher, please consider filling out this short survey.

Books

These books are not cheap.  I would suggest checking your local university or college.

Buskirk, Steven W., Alton S. Harestad, Martin G. Raphael, and Roger A. Powell, editors.  1994.  Martens, Sables, and Fishers: Biology and Conservation. Ithaca, NY: Cornell University Press.

Powell, Roger A.  1993.  The Fisher: Life History, Ecology, and Behavior. Minneapolis, MN: University of Minnesota Press.  (If you only read one book, I would suggest this one.)