The distinct scent of a coyote has puzzled many who have crossed paths with these cunning creatures. With their sharp sense of smell allowing them to detect prey and threats from afar, have you ever wondered what a coyote smells like in return?
If you’re short on time, here’s a quick answer: Coyotes give off a musky odor that is often described as similar to wet dogs due to scent glands located near their tails. Their smell tends to be more pronounced during breeding seasons.
In this comprehensive guide, we’ll cover everything you need to know about a coyote’s scent, including:
• Key factors that influence how coyotes smell
• How their odor changes by season
• What their scent is used for
• Tips on detecting coyote smell signs
What Influences a Coyote’s Smell
Diet and Health
A coyote’s diet significantly impacts how it smells. As carnivores that feed on small mammals like rabbits and rodents, the smell of blood and decaying flesh often lingers on a coyote’s fur and breath.
Well-fed coyotes with strong immune systems have less unpleasant body odors compared to malnourished or sick coyotes struggling with skin infections or wounds.
Breeding Cycles
Coyote smell fluctuates with seasonal breeding cycles. Male coyotes secrete more scent from specialized anal glands during the mating season to attract females. The potent musky smell serves as a chemical signal advertising the male’s readiness to reproduce.
Females also exude smells indicating fertility status in their urine and genital discharge when in estrus.
Scent Glands
Coyotes possess several scent glands on their bodies that contribute unique smells:
These powerful signature smells allow coyotes to relay social information and communicate with other pack members.
Habitat
The types of habitats coyotes occupy also contribute to how they smell. Desert-dwelling coyotes may have dry, earthy smells clinging to their fur from digging dens in sandy soil. Forest-roaming coyotes carry richer organic odors of decaying vegetation and other woodland scents.
And coyotes living in urban areas near garbage access often give off unpleasant “dumpster smells” from scavenged food waste.
How Coyote Odor Changes by Season
A coyote’s smell can vary quite a bit throughout the year. Here’s an overview of how a coyote’s odor profile changes with each season:
Spring
In the spring, coyotes smell more strongly of their musky natural scent. This is because spring is breeding season, and coyotes are more active in marking their territories. The potent, musky smell comes from the glands on their body.
It’s nature’s way of helping them attract mates and ward off competing coyotes. Their smell is likely to be most noticeable during the peak breeding months of January to March.
Summer
During the summer months, coyotes tend to smell less musky. Their coats are shedding so their natural scent isn’t as strong. However, they may pick up smells from their environment, like vegetation, dirt, or food remains from their prey.
If a coyote has been rolling in something or rummaging through garbage, its smell can be quite unpleasant and pungent in the summer heat.
Fall
As temperatures cool in the fall, coyotes start to grow in their winter coat. This increases their musky, wild smell again. It’s not quite as strong as during breeding season, but it’s noticeably more than in the summer.
Coyotes are also very active in the fall months as they hunt to build up fat reserves for the winter. A fall coyote may have the smell of its prey (like a skunk or deer) lingering on its coat.
Winter
Coyote odor is often strongest in the winter. Their heavy seasonal coat fully grows in and holds that natural musky scent. Staying active in hunting keeps their scent glands producing strongly. Winter is also when coyotes are most likely to scavenge carcasses for food, rolling in leftover flesh and bringing back very unpleasant odors.
In areas with snow, coyotes may also smell like wet fur when they come in from the cold.
The Purpose of Coyote Scent
Marking Territory
Coyotes utilize their scent to establish boundaries and mark their territories. They have special glands near their tails that produce a musky odor. When a coyote rubs up against objects like rocks or trees, it deposits this scent to alert other coyotes that this area is occupied.
Coyotes are highly territorial and will fiercely defend areas they have claimed as their own. Scent marking is an important way for them to communicate occupancy and ward off trespassers.
Coyotes have a keen sense of smell, so these scents provide critical information. The smells allow coyotes to determine if an area belongs to a rival pack. They can also gauge how recently the markers were left. More frequent scent deposits usually indicate the resident coyotes are active in the zone.
The strength and uniqueness of each coyote’s smell may also convey their health, age and status in the pack.
In addition to rubbing against objects, coyotes will urinate or defecate in conspicuous areas to visibly alert others of their presence. Strong scents from urine and feces can persist for weeks or months before fading.
These potent odors send a clear message that the location is occupied and defended. Scent marking behavior tends to increase during the breeding season when coyotes are more motivated to protect their territories.
Attracting Mates
Coyotes also leverage their natural scent to find and attract potential mates. Each coyote has a distinct smell that allows them to identify members of their own pack. During the mating season, male coyotes will roam beyond their normal boundaries in search of females.
The males’ scents allow receptive females to distinguish them as potential partners rather than threats.
Additionally, female coyotes nearing estrus will produce chemicals in their urine called pheromones. Male coyotes can detect these sexual attractants from over a mile away. By honing in on the pheromones, male coyotes are guided right to the fertile, receptive females.
This scent-tracking allows them to locate mates even when widely dispersed across large territories.
Once a male and female coyote have met, they continue using scent to forge pair bonds. Courting pairs will rub, lick and groom each other frequently. This close physical contact exchanges scents and establishes familiarity.
It also allows the coyotes to continue assessing potential compatibility through smell. Coordinate scent marking also helps solidify the new mated pair’s joined territorial boundaries.
Tips for Detecting Nearby Coyotes by Smell
Coyotes have a very keen sense of smell, even better than dogs, so they can detect odors from great distances. Here are some tips for noticing signs of coyotes nearby based on their scent:
Smell Their Markings
Coyotes scent mark their territory by urinating and leaving droppings in prominent places. If you pick up a musky, skunk-like odor, it could indicate the presence of a coyote den or frequent travel path nearby. Coyotes also scratch the ground after eliminating, so look for disturbed areas.
Notice Unusual Pet Odors
Pets like cats and small dogs that spend time outdoors may pick up the scent of a coyote by crossing paths with one. If your pet comes home with an unusual musky or skunky odor you don’t recognize, it could mean coyotes are near your home.
Smell Rotting Food Odors
Coyotes are opportunistic eaters and get attracted to human food waste. If you notice odors of rotting fruit, meat, or other trash, it could be a sign that coyotes are lingering nearby.
Detect Musk When You Hear Howls
Coyotes howl to communicate with each other and mark their territory. If you hear coyote howling, you may be able to smell their musky odor carried on the wind if you are downwind from them.
Notice Scent Changes After A Coyote Encounter
If you or your pet has a close encounter with a coyote, their scent may linger on fur or clothing afterwards. Look out for a musky or skunky odor if an interaction occurs.
Trusting your nose is one of the best ways to detect the presence of coyotes near your home or property before actually seeing them. Pay attention to unusual and out-of-place odors outside, especially musky, skunky, or rotting food smells, as they could indicate a coyote’s territory or recent activity in the area.
Conclusion
A coyote’s musky odor serves important purposes for the species while alerting keen noses to their presence. While not the most pleasant scent, appreciating the smelly sign left by coyotes allows us to coexist safely with these intelligent creatures in shared habitats.
We covered the key factors influencing their smell, its changes by season, and how to detect it. Understanding what coyotes smell like leads to better understanding coyotes as a whole.
