2015 JSAFWA 296 Seasonal and Spatial Variation in Diets of Coyotes in Central Georgia James D. Kelly, New York State Department of Environmental Conservation, Division of Fish, Wildlife, and Marine Resources, 625 Broadway, 5th loor, Albany, NY 12233 William D. Gulsby, D. B. Warnell School of Forestry and Natural Resources, University of Georgia, Athens, GA 30602 Charlie H. Killmaster, Georgia Department of Natural Resources, Wildlife Resources Division, 2070 U.S. Highway 278, S.E. Social Circle, GA 30025 John W. Bowers, Georgia Department of Natural Resources, Wildlife Resources Division, 2070 U.S. Highway 278, S.E. Social Circle, GA 30025 Karl V. Miller, D. B. Warnell School of Forestry and Natural Resources, University of Georgia, Athens, GA 30602 Abstract: We used scat analysis to evaluate the food habits and potential impacts of coyotes (Canis latrans) on white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) populations in Georgia’s Piedmont physiographic region. From March 2010 – February 2011, we analyzed 146 and 207 coyote scats on Cedar Creek (CC) and B. F. Grant (BFG) Wildlife Management Areas, respectively. Although separated by only 8 km, habitat composition and therefore prey avail- ability was dissimilar between sites. We assumed small mammal density was greater on BFG than CC because early successional habitat was more com- mon on BFG (28% of area vs 7% on CC). Similarly, estimated deer densities on BFG (29 deer/km 2 ) were approximately twice that of CC (12 deer/km 2 ). Commonly occurring food items in scats on both areas included persimmon (Diospyros virginiana), muscadine (Vitis rotundifolia), deer, hispid cotton rats (Sigmodon hispidus), cottontails (Sylvilagus spp.), and insects. From July–October, sot mast occurred in 61% and 93% of scats on BFG and CC, re- spectively. From January–October, small mammals occurred in a greater percentage of scats on BFG (38%) than on CC (9%), except during the fawning season (May–June). During the fawning season, 61.5% and 26.7% of scats contained fawn remains on BFG and CC, respectively. Increased availability of fawns on BFG likely made them a more energetically proitable prey choice than on CC, where deer were less abundant, despite greater density of alternative prey on BFG. Habitat management to increase the availability of small mammals as alternative prey for coyotes may have minimal impact on coyote depredation of white-tailed deer fawns. Key words: coyote, Canis latrans, deer, diet, Georgia, Odocoileus virginianus Journal of the Southeastern Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies 2:296–302 Historically, the range of the coyote (Canis latrans) was lim- ited to western North America, but in the latter half of the 20th century, their range expanded into the southeastern United States due to natural and anthropogenic factors (Bekof 1977, Hill et al. 1987, Kilgo et al. 2010). Changes in the landscape, the intentional release of coyotes for sport hunting, and the extirpation of the red wolf (C. rufus) have all contributed to the success of coyotes in the Southeast. he efects of coyotes on game species including white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus), Northern bobwhite (Colinus virgin- ianus), and wild turkey (Meleagris gallopavo) are of interest to hunt- ers and wildlife managers, especially in the Southeast where coyotes are a relatively recent addition to the predator community and are becoming increasingly abundant (Lovell et al. 1998, Houben 2004, Kilgo et al. 2010). While fawns can be a major food item for coyotes during the fawning season in the Southeast (Wooding et al. 1984, Schrecengost et al. 2008, VanGilder 2008, Howze 2009), fawns are not always a primary prey item (Gipson 1974, Stratman and Pelton 1997). Several factors including climatic conditions (Andelt et al. 1987), prey abundance (VanGilder et al. 2009), predator abundance (Grovenburg et al. 2011, Kilgo et al. 2010), or the presence of alter- native prey (Harrison and Harrison 1984, Andelt et al. 1987) can inluence coyote predation on fawns. herefore, identiication of important factors afecting predation rates in diferent systems is critical to understanding the efects of coyotes on deer populations. Coyotes have a broad diet in the Southeast which primarily consists of several species of sot mast, small mammals (e.g., ro- dents and lagomorphs), insects (primarily Orthopterans and Co- leopterans), and deer (primarily carrion and fawns), although the relative occurrence of individual items varies among studies. hus, some have proposed that high availability of non-deer food items may bufer fawn predation (Andelt et al. 1987, Pusateri Burroughs et al. 2006). However, indings from multiple coyote food habits studies suggest that coyotes consume fawns when available, despite