Two coyotes have been shot and killed by Idaho wildlife officials after a fire ignited in their habitat, according to the state wildlife department.
Wildlife spokesman Dave Schmitz said the coyotes were found Saturday in an area where the blaze started, the Idaho Statesman reported.
“They were not injured in the fire,” Schmitos said.
The fire was reported at 8:10 a.m.
Saturday near Lake Lelaho, near the Idaho State Capitol.
Schmitz told The Associated Press that two coyotes killed in the blaze were “a very large family of coyotes” and were found in a wooded area.
The department’s deputy chief, Steve O’Brien, said the two coyote killed had been with their family in a nearby area for a month.
“This is the second fire in the past month that has been in the same area, and we’re continuing to do our best to contain this fire,” he said.
O’Brien said that he couldn’t provide further details on the coyote deaths because they’re not part of a formal investigation.
The agency has a coyote problem in the U.S., where coyotes are widely used as pets and used in food production and livestock production.
The U.N. wildlife agency said in September that coyotes in the United States pose a danger to humans and wildlife, and that they were “often found in urban areas, in schools, on public transportation and in private vehicles.”