More coyotes killed over fatal attack on T.O. singer

Taylor Mitchell is pictured in this undated promotional photo. (LW Communications / THE CANADIAN PRESS)

Parks officials in Nova Scotia say they have killed another two coyotes suspected in the mauling death of a young GTA folksinger.

The two adult males were shot on Wednesday in Cape Breton Highlands National Park.

It is believed one of the animals had been involved in the attack on 19-year-old Taylor Mitchell, who had been out alone on the park's Skyline Trail on Oct. 27.

She died the next day in a Halifax hospital. Her family held a funeral for Mitchell on Thursday in Mississauga.

"We're confident one of the animals we shot was the second animal we were looking for," said Chip Bird of Parks Canada.

That conclusion was reached based on a physical inspection of the coyote by the warden, its aggressive behaviour and eyewitness accounts of the fatal attack on Mitchell, he said.

Initial indications don't raise suspicions the animal is diseased, Bird said.

RCMP officers who responded to the original 911 call shot and killed a female coyote shortly after the attack.

All three coyote carcasses are being sent to the Canadian Centre for Wildlife Health at the University of Prince Edward Island for further analysis.

Coyote attacks on human beings are considered very rare. The trailhead, which is close to the Cape Breton town of Cheticamp, does warn hikers about moose and bears.

About 25,000 people per year use the Skyline trail, making it the most popular hike in the park.

With files from The Canadian Press