Coyotes Close to Home: teacher key

Coyotes, grade 5 edition, written for 5th grade. Coyotes live in forests, deserts and even big cities. Meet their size, food, sounds and pups, and see how far they have spread.

Read the book. Print this page for the key.

Questions and answers

1. What does carrion mean?
   • Animals that are already dead (answer)
   • Fruit
   • A coyote den
2. Why do coyotes howl?
   • To find food in snow
   • To tell other coyotes where they are (answer)
   • To dig a den
3. How many pups does a coyote family often have at a time?
   • One or two
   • Twelve
   • Five to seven (answer)
4. A coyote will eat almost anything it can find. What kind of eater does that make it?
   • An opportunistic eater (answer)
   • A picky eater
   • A fruit-only eater
5. In the Chicago area, when are coyotes mostly active?
   • At night (answer)
   • At noon
   • Only in winter

Words

• opportunistic: takes easy food
• carrion: dead animals
• mate: pair up
• rodents: mice and rats