Mistaken Identity No Excuse for Harming Critical Carnivores
This post is the first in a series on scientific and public policy issues related to carnivore protection and recovery in the Northeastern United States.
The first time I saw my bushy-tailed, black and white cat Trixie, he was creeping over a snowbank. Spotting him through a window, I thought, “I’ve never seen a skunk there before.” Fortunately, Trixie revealed his true self and came in from the cold. Unfortunately for countless other animals, mistaken identity can be fatal—including wild carnivores that are pillars of rewilding.
Hunting laws contribute to the problem when they support the killing of one species and prohibit the killing of another even when the two look alike. In 2021 in Cooperstown, New York, a hunter shot what he thought was a large coyote—but which genetic testing proved was a Great Lakes wolf. This tragic error has occurred many times across the Northeast, where it’s legal to kill unlimited numbers of coyotes 24/7 and all year round (New York State limits the season to six months).
At the same time, wolves are classified as endangered and killing them is currently prohibited by law. State wildlife agencies nationwide have chosen not to fine or prosecute hunters who kill wolves, instead adhering to the “McKittrick Policy,” which stipulates that only when someone intends to kill an endangered species can they be held accountable.
This controversial stance contradicts wildlife agencies’ position that hunters should be able to distinguish between look-alike species such as wolves and coyotes. Observed side by side, the animals have obvious differences—but what about a single animal seen at a distance under field conditions that can include rain, snow, pale dawn and dusk light, and the dark of night?
It doesn’t help when agencies offer limited and confusing information to the public. For example, the New York Department of Environmental Conservation tells hunters that coyotes stand “less than 2 feet tall at the shoulder” but wolves measure “over 2 feet tall at the shoulder.” Similar fuzziness applies to lynx, a protected species classified as threatened, and bobcat, a species that is widely hunted and trapped. According to the Maine Department of Fish and Wildlife, the ear tufts of bobcat are “generally less than 1 inch” but those of lynx are “generally greater than 1 inch.”
It’s also problematic if agencies use photos of smaller western coyotes, not larger eastern ones, to compare with wolves (see the DEC chart below).

Guide to the differences between wolves and coyotes (Source: NYDEC)

Guide to the differences between bobcat and lynx (Source: Maine Dept. of Inland Fisheries & Wildlife)
Such distinctions could blur even more going forward. The revelations of recent genetic research and the forces of evolution make clear that coyotes and wolves have long been sharing and swapping genes and can have similar looks and behaviors, particularly in the eastern U.S. Such convergence could also mark the future of lynx and bobcat as climate change and human development shift the species’ prior ranges, as indicated by documentation of hybridized animals.
For their part, hunters bear responsibility for properly sizing up what they’re aiming for and not pulling the trigger when unsure. Recent high-profile cases of hunters shooting family dogs they claimed looked like coyotes—even when the animals wore a vest while walking with the owner or were a black lab, shorthaired pointer, or German shepherd—indicate room for improvement. Hunters and trappers could also share more information with wildlife agencies about what they’re seeing.
A bill recently introduced in New York would require hunters and trappers to report when they kill large coyotes so the DEC can conduct a DNA sample, critical to understanding the mix of wild canids roaming the state. The Rewilding Institute and its partners in the Northeast Wolf Recovery Alliance have called on agencies across the region to adopt this policy, prohibit the hunting of coyotes at night (when the risk of misidentification is highest), and limit how many coyotes can be killed and when.
We are also pushing agencies across the Northeast to list top carnivores, in particular wolves and cougar, as “Species of Greatest Conservation Need” under State Wildlife Action Plans. Doing so will provide guidance and accountability for agencies to better understand, protect, and restore native species. Such measures are critical for the sake of wolves making their way to the Northeast now and in the future. They will also help coyotes, a wild neighbor with a key ecological role to play and with which people can certainly learn to coexist.
Carnivores need room to roam across the Northeast and are critical to rewilding now and forever. Claims of mistaken identity should not be allowed to get in their way.
Nadia Steinzor is an environmental consultant with 25 years of experience in policy analysis, research, writing, and communications. She has developed and managed projects to investigate the oil and gas industry’s impact on the climate and communities, secure governmental protections for air, water, land, and wildlife, and engage the public in advocacy efforts. Nadia works with the Rewilding Institute to ensure that wolves and other carnivores thrive and roam in the Northeast and beyond. Nadia holds an M.S. in environmental policy from the Bard College Center for Environmental Policy.
We tried twice years ago to get the USFWS to regulate “coyote” killing in the northeastto protect wolves under the similarity of appearance clause of the ESA. They refused. Perhaps it’s time to try again.
Humans shouldn’t be killing any other species except for natural prey animals that they eat. Since felines and canines are natural prey animals, humans have no business killing them. Coyotes can be overpopulated, but that’s only because humans killed all the wolves. Restore the wolves, problem solved.