Sorry about the delay, I saw this post then got distracted.
Look at "habitat", food, water, shelter and space (sheer area and juxtaposition). They are omnivores, so their diet varies some. Most of the year, they like small mammals (think rabbits and smaller) and larger insects like grasshoppers. Come September, they switch things up and hit acorns amd persimmons hard for several weeks (coyotes often do the same....more on this in a second). Water, well around urban areas, water is pretty much a non issue even during a drought. Shelter, they like pretty much any mixed hardwood areas (see acorns/oaks) AND they like with big rocky areas or downed large trees....now think about the edge of the Hill Country on NW SA. Now think of all the interconnected green space around SA, and how they connect food, shelter and water is a usable matrix.
Now is we add the component of habitat of "interaction with other species". There is a pretty strong link between coyote populations and grey fox populations. There is a lot of direct competition between coyotes and grey foxes. Coyotes love to eat foxes when they can catch them. So lots of coyotes, fewer foxes. Foxes will often seek out areas with fewer coyotes. Grey foxes also show quite a bit of behavioral plasticity, especially if they get a meal or too. So if a neighbor happens to intentionally feed (or unintentionally) one, they will become your buddy real quick. Coyotes may hang out near humans, but rarely become buddy buddy. This may unintentionally create a small, safe territory.....behavioral habitat access.
