Many people, however, still believe the coyote is a pest that should be removed by whatever means possible. Coyotes are helpful to the farmer because they eats groundhogs during the summer. Mice, and especially meadow voles, are commonly preyed on by coyotes. These small rodents make up almost a third of the coyote's diet even in fall and winter. Rabbits and hares provide between 15 and 40 percent of the coyote's diet depending on the numbers of rabbits and hares.
Coyotes probably have as varied a diet as any carnivore.
They eat rabbits, rodents, birds, amphibians, reptiles, and fish. All sorts of vegetable matter are also eaten. Carrion or dead animals are eaten when found. Carrion is an important source of food. The remains of dead livestock, wildlife killed along highways, and animals that have died from natural causes have been found in the stomachs and droppings of coyotes.