Out On the Wing #90: Coyote Prowl
Well, I was about to go to bed and what unexpected noise did I hear, but a coyote (Canis latrans) calling in the dead of night. The wooping, yowling call of a coyote or two can send chills down anyone's spine, especially to those that aren't used to hearing them that often.
So, keen to investigate, I alerted my housemate (who despite the late hour was doing dishes) to investigate the sound. We donned headlamps and headed outside into the cold night air. We pointed our headlamps towards the back parking lot near where the entrance of the Four Seasons trail begins. We heard pacing footsteps that resembled that of a dog as opposed to a deer. Deliberate and pacing as opposed to stiff and dainty. As we looked into the gloom, my housemate called to the coyote with a howl. It stared right at us. Its green eyeshine glowing in the beams of our headlamps.
We moved in closer. It backed away into the brush, but didn't leave the area. We backtracked and it came loping back, but remained in the back parking lot and stared at us once again. Part of me thought it was a deer due to the height off the ground, but the way it stared and then came back after retreating initially made it seem unlikely that it was a deer. Also the howls were unmistakeable.
So as I sit typing this, I'm still a bit shaken by the sharpness of their calls, but invigorated as well. After all, its not every night you're visited by the Song Dog.
So, keen to investigate, I alerted my housemate (who despite the late hour was doing dishes) to investigate the sound. We donned headlamps and headed outside into the cold night air. We pointed our headlamps towards the back parking lot near where the entrance of the Four Seasons trail begins. We heard pacing footsteps that resembled that of a dog as opposed to a deer. Deliberate and pacing as opposed to stiff and dainty. As we looked into the gloom, my housemate called to the coyote with a howl. It stared right at us. Its green eyeshine glowing in the beams of our headlamps.
We moved in closer. It backed away into the brush, but didn't leave the area. We backtracked and it came loping back, but remained in the back parking lot and stared at us once again. Part of me thought it was a deer due to the height off the ground, but the way it stared and then came back after retreating initially made it seem unlikely that it was a deer. Also the howls were unmistakeable.
So as I sit typing this, I'm still a bit shaken by the sharpness of their calls, but invigorated as well. After all, its not every night you're visited by the Song Dog.
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