View Full Version : Coyote Attack on Mount Diablo
DiabloScott
08-27-07, 02:23 PM
A Grizzly Peak club member got bitten by a coyote on Summit Road between Junction and Juniper last Tuesday evening (Aug 21). He told the rangers about it and they got approval to shoot the coyote and they found it and did shoot it but it got away probably to die in the brush.
They're thinking it was rabid and the guy is getting the rabies procedure.
If one has it, wonder how many more do?
jonathanb715
08-27-07, 02:28 PM
Wow, that's scary. I've come up on a coyote unexpectedly, and it was trapped between me and the side of the hill. It went after my foot as I went by, but I suspect that was because I startled it and it felt backed into a corner. I was descending, so it missed (if I had been climbing, it could have leisurely strolled over and taken a chunk out of my leg if it wanted to).
JB
DiabloScott
08-27-07, 02:44 PM
Here's the story from his friend as posted on the club forum.
One of our members (we'll call him Bill) asked me to write this message for him. In short, a coyote chased and bit him Tuesday evening as he rode down the Summit before the Junction on Mt. Diablo. This was after he had seen a coyote the week before and it chased him, which he reported to the rangers. The attitude the first time, as he said, sounded like, "Huh, that's strange." It's unclear if they did anything in response the first time.
On his way up Tuesday evening, he noticed the coyote farther up Summit Road. At the top, he saw one other cyclist, who said he had seen it also.
Frankly, I can't remember exactly, but, I thought Bill said the coyote chased him a bit on the way up. So the two decided to go down together and watch out for each other. Below where Bill saw the coyote on the way up, he started to relax a bit and then noticed a flash of fur at his side before the coyote got his leg.
The rangers Bill then contacted got Fish and Game approval to take the coyote down, but, unfortunately, the ranger decided to aim at the hindquarters with a .223 caliber rifle. (I don't know these things, but, I understand that is a relatively low-level caliber.) As a result, he only wounded the coyote and it got away. It likely is dead by now. But Bill's getting rabies shots.
So be on the lookout at odd times on the Mount. Likely, this very isolated event is just another in a string of bad luck for my unfortunate friend. But it's possible the coyote is still out there, or, there is something else going on.
ranger decided to aim at the hindquarters with a .223 caliber rifle.
I know our local police have AR-15s in their cars. Are the rangers using them too?
ricebowl
08-27-07, 03:00 PM
The caliber should've been plenty for a coyote. Sounds like it's the ranger's fault that the coyote was not killed cleanly and without suffering.
The rangers Bill then contacted got Fish and Game approval to take the coyote down, but, unfortunately, the ranger decided to aim at the hindquarters with a .223 caliber rifle. (I don't know these things, but, I understand that is a relatively low-level caliber.) As a result, he only wounded the coyote and it got away. It likely is dead by now. But Bill's getting rabies shots.
Siu Blue Wind
08-27-07, 03:16 PM
Too bad they couldn't find the coyote. It could have been tested and perhaps the long painful series of rabies shots could have been avoided.
DiabloScott
08-27-07, 03:51 PM
Apparently the rabies test requires an intact brain so it could be that the ranger was instructed to aim for the rear end. Or it could be that he wasn't a good shot.
A coyote probably gets rabies from eating an infected squirrel or raccoon so I really wonder how much of the virus is existing in the wildlife here. A quick Gooogle says 40,000 people get the rabies shots every year!
BlastRadius
08-27-07, 03:58 PM
I wonder if the heat could be causing a scarcity in food.
hammern_frank
08-27-07, 04:13 PM
DiabloScott,
I wonder if its the same coyote that is on your blog:eek:
By the way I think I was just getting started up the hill as you were heading out on Wednesday.
When I was descending down Diablo on Wednesday I saw the Rangers pulling out the rifle. I'm surprised it was only a .22 It looked bigger. Maybe it was the high power scope. Probably didn't need one though. The coyotes on Diablo have been fearless this year. Now we know why!?!
Time to figure out how to mount the pellet gun to the bike.;)
alicestrong
08-27-07, 04:18 PM
Carry a canister of pepper spray...
hammern_frank
08-27-07, 04:22 PM
Maybe it was a cry for help:p
DiabloScott
08-27-07, 04:32 PM
DiabloScott,
I wonder if its the same coyote that is on your blog:eek:
By the way I think I was just getting started up the hill as you were heading out on Wednesday.
When I was descending down Diablo on Wednesday I saw the Rangers pulling out the rifle. I'm surprised it was only a .22 It looked bigger. Maybe it was the high power scope. Probably didn't need one though. The coyotes on Diablo have been fearless this year. Now we know why!?!
Time to figure out how to mount the pellet gun to the bike.;)
The coyote attack was on Tuesday evening. If you saw a ranger with a rifle on Wednesday then maybe the rangers have an eradication program now, I'm not sure. One of the rangers is a friend of a friend so I'm trying to find out more.
Apparently rabies in coyotes is pretty rare which is even scarier because if this one didn't have rabies then he was just plain viscious.
Call out "hey DiabloScott" to everyone you see, I'm probably one of them and I'll probably wave. Seriously, it's hard to hear anything on the way down at 76 mph.
johnny99
08-27-07, 04:39 PM
I wonder if the heat could be causing a scarcity in food.
More likely the dry winter.
BlastRadius
08-27-07, 04:45 PM
When I was descending down Diablo on Wednesday I saw the Rangers pulling out the rifle. I'm surprised it was only a .22 It looked bigger. Maybe it was the high power scope.
.223 is quite a bit different than a .22 Long Rifle cartridge.
There's significantly more gunpowder behind the bullet in a .223 resulting
in much higher muzzle velocity.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/.223
hammern_frank
08-27-07, 04:57 PM
The coyote attack was on Tuesday evening. If you saw a ranger with a rifle on Wednesday then maybe the rangers have an eradication program now, I'm not sure. One of the rangers is a friend of a friend so I'm trying to find out more.
Apparently rabies in coyotes is pretty rare which is even scarier because if this one didn't have rabies then he was just plain viscious.
Call out "hey DiabloScott" to everyone you see, I'm probably one of them and I'll probably wave. Seriously, it's hard to hear anything on the way down at 76 mph.
Are you going to be up there this Wednesday?
.223 yup, thats what they were using. Next time a Ranger yells at me to slow down, I'll pay a little more attention:eek:
DiabloScott
08-27-07, 05:18 PM
Are you going to be up there this Wednesday?
Yup, might be a small turnout, we aim to get to the Gate by 5:30 but sometimes it winds up being a little later.
Or you can watch for my truck on Doncaster (next to Mormon church).
http://bp0.blogger.com/_hSZo5vjiPmQ/RgKEnmQeWkI/AAAAAAAAAFA/KGuDoYMTq9w/s400/PICT0003.JPG
I'll be donating blood tomorrow so I probably will be dragging on Wednesday; if you bring your hamer I'll get droped for sure.
(pre-emptory excuse making at it's finest!)
Or you can watch for my truck on Doncaster (next to Mormon church).
http://bp0.blogger.com/_hSZo5vjiPmQ/RgKEnmQeWkI/AAAAAAAAAFA/KGuDoYMTq9w/s400/PICT0003.JPG
Will it be with, or without, the Chain Reaction H2O bottle?... ;)
hammern_frank
08-27-07, 05:44 PM
I'll be donating blood tomorrow so I probably will be dragging on Wednesday; if you bring your hamer I'll get droped for sure.
(pre-emptory excuse making at it's finest!)
Dude, thats about as crazy as Diablo coyotes! Donating blood then riding up Diablo:eek:(its my icon of the day)
I rode with a guy a couple months ago who did that....he made to the top but I thought for sure he was going down in a Medevac Copter.
Diablo Scott is a reverse blood-doper !
(ducking & running)
^^^ Haha! Very witty comment. Perhaps for next year's Amgen ToC there will be a requirement for all riders to donate blood before each day's stage. :p
DiabloScott
08-28-07, 02:28 PM
Diablo Scott is a reverse blood-doper !
(ducking & running)
http://lh3.google.com/DiabloScottsBikeBlog/RtSGseIFpDI/AAAAAAAABVo/r_ywRdla3aM/s800/Giving%20Blood.JPG
Just about fainted again.
rschulze
08-28-07, 03:25 PM
A 223 is an extremely high velocity but slow bullet. Great for extremely long range. It passed right through that animal and he died a slow death of blood loss and shattered bone. The ranger should have shot him through the chest (lungs) and the animal would not have suffered long.
DiabloScott
08-28-07, 05:02 PM
A 223 is an extremely high velocity but slow bullet. Wow, how do they do THAT?
It passed right through that animal and he died a slow death of blood loss and shattered bone. The ranger should have shot him through the chest (lungs) and the animal would not have suffered long.
I suspect these rangers have to be decent shots and pass shooting tests etc, but I don't know if many of them are hunters. I also suspect the coyote wasn't standing still so even if the ranger were a pretty good shot he probably had a difficult task. I wonder how Diablo coyotes die in normal circumstances - I don't think they have any predators up there.
ricebowl
08-28-07, 06:12 PM
:roflmao:
A 223 is an extremely high velocity but slow bullet. Great for extremely long range.
roadfix
08-28-07, 06:28 PM
I had no idea coyotes attacked humans. Since the Griffith Park fire here in SoCal a few months back I see more and more coyotes on the secluded canyon roads where I ride. Last Thursday I saw two of them roaming in the middle of the road where I rode just a few feet away from them. They were minding their own business. This is becoming a frequent occurence.
rschulze
08-28-07, 06:37 PM
[QUOTE=DiabloScott;5163405]Wow, how do they do THAT?
QUOTE]
oops, high velocity but SMALL bullet
Rincewind8
08-28-07, 06:37 PM
I don't think they have any predators up there.
In the more remote parts of the park there sometimes is a/are mountain lion(s) that could kill coyotes. But I think the coyotes more likely die from old age and/or illness.
Dchiefransom
08-28-07, 06:51 PM
It's extremely dry in this area, they can't even get the goats to eat the grass along the freeways anymore. The poster above that said that coyote prey has moved off Diablo toward water is probably correct. If rangers are going to carry rifles, they should have scoped ones and practice with them. Much easier to get used to and more accurate. They should also avoid full metal jacket ammunition, as regular soft points would result in dispatching the animal quicker.
DiabloScott
08-28-07, 07:25 PM
It's extremely dry in this area, they can't even get the goats to eat the grass along the freeways anymore. The poster above that said that coyote prey has moved off Diablo toward water is probably correct. If rangers are going to carry rifles, they should have scoped ones and practice with them. Much easier to get used to and more accurate. They should also avoid full metal jacket ammunition, as regular soft points would result in dispatching the animal quicker.
Coyotes on the Mountain mostly eat rabbits and squirrels, there still seem to be enough of them up there but the coyote population seems higher than ever. Would lack of prey turn otherwise cautious animals into aggressive attackers? I don't think this coyote was trying to eat the rider, I think he was either spooked, protecting a den, rabid, or just plain mean.
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