May 2007 Mystery Photo Revealed
This is the solution to our May Mystery Photo:
Congratulations to Aaron who correctly guessed Coyote! I don’t think the Coyote really lives up to its Latin name of Canis latrans which means “barking dog” as it rarely barks. I think it would be more appropriate to call it the “howling, yipping, amazingly resourceful dog”, however you say that in Latin.
This medium-sized canid is incredibly adaptable and has spread throughout North and Central America in the absence of its larger competitors: wolves, bears and mountain lions. Often the focus of extermination efforts by humans, the Coyote population has instead exploded.
The Coyote can support its 35 pound frame on a varied diet; they eat anything from garbage, fruit, vegetables, and rodents to people’s pets. Even though Coyotes are living in increasingly urban environments (like Los Angeles, Tucson, Chicago, and even New York City) attacks on humans are quite rare. As a kid, I fell asleep listening to Coyotes howling in the desert nearby, and I always wanted to know what they were saying.
The Coyote in this picture was carefully wandering the edge of a field where hundreds of Snow Geese were feeding at Bosque del Apache National Wildlife Refuge in New Mexico. That evening we got the feeling that even though this Coyote was not actively hunting, it was on the lookout for whatever opportunity might arise.
As always, thanks to everyone who takes the time to decipher my pictures!
Living here in Maine and in the foothills of the White Mountains, it was just a few evenings ago that I heard a lone coyote bark as he called to a few others that returned the original bark, The returned barks were from the same locale but not exactly close together. Shortly thereafter they must have assembled for a chase for after a few more barks they went off together, yipping crying in such a way that the short hair on my bald head stood straight as they went on a chase. That’s a sound we hear about once a month except in the time of deep snow.
Incidentally, several years ago, early one morning, I was treated to see Mother Nature in action when I saw a doe break out of the woods into my back yard, within 30 ft. of the window where I was looking through. The doe was in full flight just strides ahead of what I guess was a large wolf/coyote cross that was hard on the deer’s heels.
Bob Wallstrom
Brownfield, ME