Coyote (Canis latrans)

Coyotes are common throughout Colorado and are frequently seen in open fields and meadows. Easily mistaken for dogs, they are about four feet long, including their long, bushy tails, and weigh in around 30 to 40 pounds when full-grown. They can fluff up their hair to make themselves look bigger and more menacing. They range in color from pale gray and buff to a rich, reddish brown. Coyotes are active day and night and will eat any small animal they can catch, including mice, rats, gophers, rabbits, and squirrels, snakes, lizards, frogs, fish, and birds. They will eat grass, fruit, and berries, as well. Because they will eat just about anything, they can survive in a wide range of habitats.
For more information about coyotes in Colorado go to:
Living With Coyotes (Colorado Parks and Wildlife)

Also worth knowing: Gray Wolves (Canis lupus) were extirpated (made locally extinct) from Colorado by the 1940s. Today, there are occasional reported sightings in other parts of Colorado, most notably in far northwestern Colorado where there is a small family group, but they are not found in or near the Bear Creek watershed. There is much discussion about the pros and cons of reintroducing wolves to Colorado.

Here’s a tip for identifying a running Canid. Check out the tail. Red Foxes have white tips on their tails and hold them straight out behind when they run. Coyotes have black tips on their tails and run with them pointed down towards the ground. Domestic dogs have all manner of tails (fluffy tails, curly tails, straight tails, otter-like tails, short tails, long tails, etc.), and usually run with them held up.

Gray Fox (Urocyon cinereoargentues)

Gray Foxes, a completely different species from the Red Fox, are present in the Bear Creek watershed but are rarely seen because they are very shy and nocturnal. They are smaller than Red Foxes and have shorter legs. They are grayish brown with blackish backs and their tails are gray with black tips. They are the only canid (member of the dog family) that can climb trees!

For more information about Gray Foxes, go to: Gray Foxes (Animal Diversity Web)

Also worth knowing: Colorado is home to two other species of fox, the Kit Fox and the Swift Fox, neither of which is found in the Bear Creek watershed.

Red Fox (Vulpes vulpes)

Red Foxes are common in this area. Adults are about three feet long and weigh up to 11 pounds. They are usually reddish orange above, white below, with black ears, legs and feet. They can also be gray, black, or black with white tipped hair, coloring called “silver.” No matter what color the coat is, if the tip of a fox’s tail is white, it is a Red Fox. Foxes are mostly nocturnal and solitary, except during season mating and when a raising their families. They feed on rodents, rabbits, birds, and other small game, fruit, vegetables and fish.

To learn more about Red Foxes go to: Living with Red Fox (Colorado Parks and Wildlife)