Greeting card companies are scrambling, no doubt, to fire entire departments of artists who draw lovebirds in cages and replace them with artists who draw scrappy wild dogs. That's because the new face of fidelity is the urban coyote, an animal that was until now better known for snatching untended Pomeranians from backyards. Hey, sometimes you have to feed your family.
Among mammals, monogamy is not a popular lifestyle. It's been estimated that five percent or fewer of mammal species opt to pair off exclusively. The practice is more common among dog relatives, which may need both parents to successfully raise a litter of puppies. But even when animals appear to be loyal to one partner, they may be sneaking around with other mates on the side. That's what researchers have observed in various fox, wolf, and wild dog species they've studied in the past—in fact, "extra-pair copulation" has turned ...
