Tag Archives: coyote

Seldom Seen

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Coyotes have the gift of seldom being seen; they keep to the edge of vision and beyond…

~N. Scott Momaday

As you may have noticed in recent months, I have not written as many blogs as in the past. I will try to do better since there is a lot to share. I’m going to start with a quick recent event and then go back to follow up on some great experiences over the past few months including finishing up our trip to South Africa last November, a fantastic trip to Nebraska last month for birding adventures, a wonderful canoe camping trip on the Cashie River in eastern North Carolina, and some of the natural happenings here in our woods.

In all my years here in Chatham County, I have only seen one coyote on this property and that was many years ago, But our trail cameras pick them up frequently, though their appearances often come in spurts with a spate of regular captures and then nothing for weeks at a time. Information presented here on the biology of coyotes is from a summary of coyote management in our state from the NC Wildlife Resources Commission. Coyotes typically mate for life and breed from January to early March. Litters of 4 to 6 are born from March through May. Coyotes tend to be more active in these months.

I have shared several video clips of coyotes in past blogs. Most often, they are seen trotting along with a seeming purpose or destination in mind. Occasionally, we have seen one carrying something, but could not discern what it was, though we assume it was a food item or prey of some sort. Coyotes are omnivores, adapting their diets to local food availability. Diet studies show a range of food choices from deer (mostly fawns or scavenged carcasses), small rodents, rabbits and other mammals, birds, insects and vegetation. The will also take advantage of human-related food sources like pet food left outside, garbage, etc.

Though most video clips captured by the trail cameras show only a few seconds of a coyote(s) trotting through the scene, we occasionally get one that lingers. This recent coyote checks out something in the leaf litter, I can’t tell whether it got a small snack or just a sniff.

–A beautiful coyote pauses near the large white oak on our south slope

Most of the time, we see a single coyote or a pair. A few times we have seen three coyotes on a video clip. The clips are either 30 seconds for daytime videos or 20 seconds for nighttime (that is the maximum length for night recordings with these cameras). So, give the tendency of coyotes to trot through a scene and for them to be strung out in a line, we may miss some if they are traveling together. Coyotes will form packs, but they are usually made up of related individuals. A breeding pair of adults plus one or more juveniles from the previous year that have not dispersed. This past week, one camera caught 4 coyotes walking by, the first time that has been recorded here. Look closely at the first coyote, especially the first few frames of the clip. It is a lactating female…she has pups!

–The first video clip in three years that has shown 4 coyotes together. The first coyote is a lactating female indicating she has pups back at a den.

As I was looking closely at this clip to confirm she was a mother coyote, I noticed she has a deformed or mangled left ear. I have seen that same coyote on several other clips. It is clear to see her distinctive ear in this clip from last month.

–Two coyotes in a rainstorm, one with a deformed left ear.

I remembered seeing this coyote on a clip from May of last year and when I looked closely at that clip, she was lactating back then as well. It is much tougher to see in this clip, but a close examination shows she has teats distending from her belly.

–A clip from May 2023, showing the same coyote (with deformed left ear) was a mother last year as well

Though I see frequent posts on local neighborhood list serves expressing fear and concern over the presence of coyotes, I am happy to have them as neighbors. I only hope they can help control the population of deer that have changed the forest structure here and in so many other locations. Plus, I hope it gives cat owners another reason to keep their cats indoors since outdoor cats are a major threat to bird populations (as well as all sorts of other living creatures). I wish ol’ one ear another successful breeding season.

Predator Potpourri

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You can’t imagine anything like nature as we know it without predators.

~Dale Jamieson

I’ve been out in the yard a lot these past couple of weeks doing the spring chores of removing the dead stalks from last year’s wildflowers, adding some mulch to walkways, etc. The spring wildflowers are showing themselves as are the usual array of winter and year-round yard birds, the first frogs of the season, and the first notable insects (this month has seen the first Bumblebee and Carpenter Bee, and the first Eastern Tiger Swallowtail, Zebra Swallowtail, Spring Azure, and Falcate Orange-tip). Spring wildflowers bring out the pollinators and the abundance of animal life brings out the predators.

This week I was cleaning out some debris next to the house and uncovered a pair of Brown Snakes (Storeria dekayi). The common name is descriptive (they are indeed, brown) but this is the reason I try to capitalize common names so there is less confusion about just a description of an animal versus its name.

-A pair of Brown Snakes along a runoff area near the house (click photos to enlarge)

-Close up view of a Brown Snake

Brown Snakes are very common here and throughout most of North Carolina. They are certainly one of the most frequently encountered snakes in our area and are often found in mulch beds and under leaves and logs where they search for earthworms, slugs, snails, and other invertebrates that make up most of their diet. These cute little snakes (10 – 20 inches in length) are harmless and are one of the first snakes I see every spring.

Another predator that frequents our yard is one whose presence is usually announced by motionless birds at our feeders. If I glance at the feeders and see a bird sitting perfectly still (often in odd-looking poses), I start looking in the nearby trees for the cause, and this winter it almost always has been a Cooper’s Hawk. In our area, we have two of the “bird hawks”, the Accipiters – the Cooper’s Hawk and the Sharp-shinned Hawk (“Sharpie”). They can be difficult to tell apart because the adults look almost identical save for a couple of diagnostic features that are not always easy to discern in the field. Cooper’s Hawks are the larger of the two, looking about the size of a crow. Sharp-shinned Hawks are smaller, more like the size of a Blue Jay. Of course, like most raptors, there is a size difference between males and females, with females generally being larger. This creates a close overlap sometimes between a large female Sharpie and a small male Cooper’s. Another feature that can help is shape of the base of the tail – Cooper’s tend to have a more rounded tail tip whereas Sharpies have a squared off tail. This can be a tricky one though. In this case, I think this is a male Cooper’s Hawk as it is smaller than one I have occasionally seen, but look at that tail!.

-A male Cooper’s Hawk Sitting above one of our feeder stations. Down below are a couple of small birds frozen in place at the feeders

-I watched this guy for about 20 minutes as he surveyed the scene. The bird frequently pulled its left foot up under it breast feathers and posed

Cooper’s Hawks make frequent trips to our feeders and cause quite a stir every time. The female caught a dove a few weeks ago and plucked and ate it against our deer fence out back. I often see some small birds perched near the hawk in the cover of a holly tree. It seems the hawk is wary of attempting to catch them and the prey seem to know they are safer surrounded by all those spiky leaves.

Earlier this week, while sitting on the screen porch, I heard the swoosh of wings as the hawk dive-bombed the area. I caught a glimpse of it as it streaked across the back fence and then made a right angle turn and flew off into the woods. I thought whatever it had chased had made its escape. But, when I walked out back, I found this pile of dove feathers so it seems dove was on its menu again.

-A pile of Mourning Dove feathers indicates the Cooper’s may have made another kill

I think it must be tough to be one of the larger birds at the feeders, especially a dove. They tend to be slower at taking flight when the hawk streaks onto the scene. Two days ago, a Red-bellied Woodpecker hit the back window very hard in an attempt to escape (it unfortunately died). I decided to not feed in that area any more this season as it is too close to the house to allow consistent escape routes from the aerial terror. I also caught the Cooper’s Hawk on one of the trail cameras this month, perched on a log frequented by squirrels. Now, if only they would start dining on that menu item (I have only seen it once, when a female Cooper’s caught a young squirrel out back).

Another raptor species has also been making itself known these past few weeks. It is breeding season for Red-shouldered Hawks and they often soar above our ridge (hence our apt road name, Buteo Ridge). One day last week, I heard some screaming and saw one land in a tree out back. Meanwhile, another smaller one (male?) soared nearby, also calling. Then, a third one appeared and there was some slight interactions and the larger one kept changing position in different trees while the two smaller ones continued to soar overhead. This went on for about 15 minutes. Have a listen (sound up)…

–The sounds of Red-shouldered Hawks in their spring aerial rituals

Our largest predators, the Coyotes, continue to baffle me in their activity patterns. Last month, I rarely saw them on the trail cameras. Then, for a span of a couple of weeks, they were seen day and night for many days in a row. This past week, nothing.

–A pair of Coyotes on the move in daylight

The cameras usually capture at least two Coyotes on the move, one trailing the other by a few seconds.

–There have been a few captures of three Coyotes traveling together on the trail cameras

Two times this month, a camera caught a Coyote carrying something – the first time a small dark object, and this time…? Any guesses? I can’t tell.

–Another predator mystery…what is this Coyote carrying?

Finally, something that most of us don’t usually think of as a predator. The wildlife ponds have attracted a lot of action this spring. They are full of Spotted Salamander eggs (another predator) and lately, they are the source of the sounds of spring. First there were a few Upland Chorus Frogs calling. Now, it is the Spring Peepers. And they can be deafening! But what a treat (unless you are a small insect). And to quote a famous “philosopher”, Here it is, your moment of Zen…(sound up)

-The sound of several tiny predators, Spring Peepers, in one of our wildlife pools

Trying to Understand Our Wild Neighbors

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We do not see nature with our eyes, but with our understandings and our hearts.

~William Hazlitt

And in some cases, we see nature with our trail cameras…

This season seems to have fewer large buck deer than I have seen the past few years, but recently, a beautiful 8-pointer kindly walked in front of one of our cameras. A week before, the same buck was caught on camera (those videos are not included here) trailing a doe that had been filmed running on the same route two minutes before the buck appeared. And just yesterday, while I was changing out the camera cards, this same buck was closely following a doe through the forest. The rut continues and some of the ladies just don’t seem all that interested

–A nice buck strolls through the field of view of one of our trail cameras

The other hot spot for activity in recent weeks has been the ‘possum hole at the base of a fallen tree. I’ve had a camera on this spot for a year now and have seen all sorts of animals coming and going including several different opossums, raccoons, deer, gray and flying squirrels, chipmunks, and a few species of birds. Once again, an opossum has been gathering leaves in its tail and carrying them into the hole. The camera recorded this activity 4 times in the past month. Below is one of those scenes…

–The opossum is getting ready for the cold weather by gathering leaves and carrying them into the hole using its tail as a tote bag

A few days later, the camera recorded a raccoon stopping by the hole and peeking inside. Two hours after that, the camera saw a coyote at the entrance to the opossum den. When the coyote walks away, you can see that the hole entrance has been dug out a bit. I’m assuming this coyote did that, but it had to have been a very quick dig to not capture it on the video (there is a slight delay of just a second or two between the time the camera is triggered by motion and when it starts recording).

–I assume this coyote did a quick dig at the entrance to the opossum den

Five days later, a coyote visits the area 4 more times over a span of several minutes (here is the longest visit). The opossum has not been seen at the hole since the first coyote visit.

–A coyote checks out the opossum den again a few days after the entrance was dug

Cameras caught coyotes several more times in the past week (on one recording, two different coyotes pass by the camera in quick succession). Two nights ago, as we were lying in bed, we heard a cacophony of coyote yips very close to the back fence. So, yesterday, I changed out the camera cards again and was rewarded with three separate coyote videos, all at the same camera. The first was just of one trotting away from the camera at 7:11 a.m. At 7:45 a.m, the coyote below comes toward the camera carrying something.

–A coyote carrying a mystery object as it trots by the camera

We can’t quite tell what it has in its mouth even after cropping and slowing it down in the next video. Could it be part of a deer carcass? Let me know if you have any thoughts.

–A slow motion clip showing the mystery object…still tough to tell

Unfortunately, the time of day that this occurred is the toughest time for the camera’s resolution. Near dawn and sunset, the cameras I have tend to struggle a bit with clarity compared to scenes in full daylight or darkness.

Nine minutes after the coyote trots by carrying what presumably is a hefty chunk of food, a second coyote wanders by the same camera, stops, and whimpers. Not sure what to make of that unless it is just feeling left out of a meal. I guess we can all relate when someone else at the table gets the last cookie.

–This coyote seems a bit bummed it may miss out on dessert

Looking forward to seeing what the cameras capture in the coming days.

Camera Captures

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These woods are lovely, dark and deep, But I have promises to keep, And miles to go before I sleep, And miles to go before I sleep.

~Robert Frost

The trail cameras continue to capture moments in the lives of our woodland neighbors. Here are a some clips from the past couple of months to highlight some of the mysteries of the forest after dark.

Most of the coyote video captures are similar to this in terms of behavior – very focused, trotting through the woods (unless they see the IR camera, and then they tend to flee). Their purposefulness made me think of the Frost poem above. This is the first time on our property that three coyotes have been recorded in one clip.
Another first for the trail cameras – Gray Foxes. Last year we had several weeks of captures of a Red Fox, but this is the first time Gray Foxes have been seen.
An Eastern Screech Owl landed on a slight mound on the forest floor containing numerous mouse runways and holes. The owl is just inside the field of view on the lower left. Did it catch a mouse?
The owl flies to a nearby sapling. I can’t see any prey…
Two nights later the owl lands on the camera. Was it attracted by the IR lights?
A few weeks later, the owl is back and presumably lands on the branch with the camera. This must be a good hunting spot.

— A beautiful Gray Fox stops by the Raccoon den tree one night to check it out

— It has been a while since we saw a Bobcat on our cameras. This one looks smaller than previous individuals. Hoping it can heel whatever is causing the limp.

Canid Capers

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Let me tell you something about wolves, child. When the snows fall and the white winds blow, the lone wolf dies, but the pack survives. In winter, we must protect one another, keep each other warm, share our strengths.

~George R. R. Martin

One of the best things about Yellowstone in winter is the enhanced viewing opportunities for many species of wildlife (not bears, of course). The usual heavy snow at high elevations forces many animals down into the valleys, which include the major roadways, so they are closer to the usual viewing locations. Plus, most species are much easier to spot against a background of snow. This is especially true of the much sought after wolves. With so many packs in the park having at least a portion of their members being the black color, it helps spot them at even great distances in winter. And, where there are wolves, there are other creatures nearby – Ravens, Black-billed Magpies, and the other park canid cousins, Coyotes and Red Foxes.

We hoped to have a few days to figure out where the wolves were being seen before the students arrived since most visitors (especially first-timers) really want to see wolves as part of their Yellowstone experience. On the day we arrived, I saw a FB post showing an amazing roadside kill of an Elk by a pair of wolves in Lamar Valley. We drove out the next day and saw the blood-stained pavement and snow indicating the kill was made within about 20 feet of the highway! We were told that rangers had used a winch to remove the carcass and transport it to a more remote location where animals could feed undisturbed by the horde of humans that would undoubtedly congregate nearby if the carcass were to remain that close to a roadway.

The bloody scene of a wolf-killed Elk. We arrived a day too late to witness it (I can’t imagine what a chaotic scene it must have been with people striving for a better look/photo of the action) (click photos to enlarge)

The next morning had us back out on the road and before sunrise we saw a group of photographers on a hill. We managed to get a space a couple of hundred yards away and climbed a small knoll where we saw wolves headed up the hill away from an apparent carcass (the presence of lots of Ravens and Black-billed Magpies was the give-away even though we could not see the exact scene from our location). Others on our knoll confirmed there was a carcass just out of sight below a low ridge. It turned out, the growing number of people down the road could see the remains of a Bison and all the action, but we opted to stay put with only about a dozen watchers instead of the shoulder-to-shoulder group of 50+ on the other hill. Though the wolves were a bit too far for great photos, the views through the scope were amazing. We could see them wiping their blood-stained faces in the snow as they walked up the hill for a post-feeding siesta. A couple of the wolves played with each other as they went, and they treated us to a group howl when most were gathered far up on the slope.

Gray Wolf from the Junction Butte pack headed away from the carcass site to join the rest of the pack
A black wolf passes by two Bald Eagles waiting their turn for the carcass
Members of the Junction Butte pack resting high above the carcass site after a feeding
The Bison carcass with Ravens in attendance

Suddenly, we heard a group of Coyotes behind us, undoubtedly anxious for their turn at the Bison buffet, but forced to wait until their larger cousins all moved up the hill. The Coyotes were a bit hesitant to cross the road to the carcass because of so many humans. Unfortunately, some of the people exhibited bad behavior by closing in on the Coyotes and, in one case, howling back at them – I lost my cool and yelled at that person to stop as that is a clear violation of park regulations). Eventually, the Coyotes made it across.

— Melissa shot this video with her iPhone through a spotting scope while we were watching the wolves. Holding the phone exactly in the right spot without a dedicated phone mount is tough (especially when the temperature is less than 10 degrees F!) so that results in some of the moving dark edges you see. These Coyotes were waiting to cross the road a couple of hundred yards from a bison carcass where wolves from the Junction Butte pack were feeding.

A full week after we watched the wolves feeding on this carcass, it was picked clean. From the road, we saw numerous human tracks headed out to the carcass, so we figured it was okay to walk our group out to survey the scene (in general, you don’t want to approach a fresh carcass to avoid disturbing the site, but enough time had elapsed for the active feeding to have ceased).

Though we saw Coyotes on several occasions, we had a hard time encountering wolves once the students arrived, and we never saw a Red Fox.

A Coyote with a full belly headed away from the carcass site
A few days after the wolves had stopped feeding at the carcass, this coyote managed to haul away a chunk of it for some solitary chewing time…
…but a pair of Black-billed Magpies followed, hoping for a morsel
And another, apparently subordinate, Coyote soon arrived
Coyote, after crossing the road at Tower Junction
Distant Coyote at Fountain Paint Pots
Fresh Gray Wolf tracks on the boardwalk at Old Faithful

On our last couple of days, we worked hard to find wolves for our group. From Melissa’s contacts, we knew the Wolf Project team was going to be flying to track and dart some animals during our stay and we finally saw the spotter plane. Melissa then recognized one of the team member’s vehicles at a pullout so we stopped and climbed a knoll to join them. It was a very distant view, but our group was thrilled to witness the helicopter crew capturing a wolf. They do this in order to place tracking collars on them for research (about a third of Yellowstone’s wolves have collars). A young technician was on the ridge explaining everything that was happening and answering all the student’s questions. It wasn’t a great viewing, but it was a great learning moment for everyone.

We ended our time in Lamar in a memorable way. Late in the day, we were headed back through the valley and spotted some cars near the Buffalo Ranch with scopes and long lenses looking up on the hill. We slowed and asked, and they had wolves high on the ridge behind the facility. We pulled in and started searching. One of the people we had asked was kind enough to walk up the road and put our scopes on the wolves to ease our search. The late afternoon light was hitting a hilltop and on it were a couple of wolves resting. Then a couple more and some interactions, all clearly visible though the spotting scopes. One viewer told us the wolves were “yawning” and we shushed everyone…indeed, the wolves had started howling (due to the distance, there is a delay from when you see them start to howl and when you actually hear it, so it looks like a big yawn at first). They continued howling for a few minutes, quite a long howl! Soon, four more wolves joined the party. This was a magical last afternoon in the park – golden light on a group of wolves (members of the 8-mile pack we later learned) and our group was able to watch and listen to them without being surrounded by a crowd. The wolves eventually made their way into a patch of trees and disappeared from view.

This was all the more special given the current controversy over increased hunting and trapping pressure on wolves in many Western states. Management of wolves was turned over to the states about ten years ago when wolf numbers reached recovery goals set by the federal government. New legislation in Montana, Wyoming, and Idaho has allowed for increased killing of wolves including those that wander out of the protected areas of the park. As of February 1, 24 wolves that usually live in packs inside Yellowstone National Park have been killed after they crossed the park boundary. This has huge implications for pack structure within the park and there is great concern among scientists about the impacts of this on their research and on local wolf populations. Many area businesses have also expressed concern as they understand the huge positive economic impact that wolves have for local communities from the thousands of tourists that come to see the wolves and other wildlife each year. As a result of issues raised from several law suits, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is scheduled to issue findings on their review of the status of re-listing of Gray Wolves in Western states later this fall.

Wildlife Neighbors

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There is a way that nature speaks, that land speaks. Most of the time we are simply not patient enough, quiet enough, to pay attention to the story.

~Linda Hogan

I recently bought another trail camera and have been putting them out in our woods the past few weeks trying to document who shares our 14 acres. I look for game trails and natural junctures (like our creek bed), placing the cameras on trees for a couple of days, and then retrieving the images. It is always a thrill to see what triggered the cameras and when. I’m also starting to look for places where there has been obvious recent activity, like the pileated log from my last post. Of course, the photographer in me wishes the images were a higher quality, but the naturalist in me is delighted with what the cameras are recording when the woods are on their own.

By far, the greatest number of captures have been of Eastern Gray Squirrels. Our woods seem extra full of them this year, perhaps due to the extraordinary mast year we have had that produced an abundance of acorns and hickory nuts. There have been many trips that did not record any animal as there is a delay between when teh camera senses movement and when it starts recording. The mouse on the pileated log from the last post is a prime example. During the day, a quick moving squirrel or a bird flying in front of the camera can leave me with nothing but guesses as to what set it off.

Below are some of my favorite captures from the last four weeks of trail cameras (best if viewed full screen) with notes on each…

One of the mystery visitors (what do you think it is?)
I think one of these guys is the culprit from that first clip (I have recorded 4 raccoons at one time on the trail cam, possibly siblings?), Notice the interaction of the two in the background
The second most recorded animal has been White-tailed Deer, with as many as 5 in the field of view at once
I have seen this buck on a couple of cameras, both day and night
This buck is an 8-pointer, but has 5 points on one side and 3 on the other. I have seen this one and the one above bedded down near our fence during daylight recently
This was the first time a coyote was caught on camera. He looks up toward the house before running, so I assume I made some noise like splitting wood or chainsawing a log. The cameras have caught one coyote on several other occasions this past week at night and once have recorded two. We hear them on occasion but I have only seen one on our property with my own eyes..
This is the wildlife neighbor I have enjoyed seeing the most. It has been caught 3 times now on camera. Before this, we had only ever seen tracks in the snow. The black legs (especially front legs) and lack of a black tail tip is characteristic of a Red Fox (Gray Foxes have black tail tips). This one seems to lack the usual white tail tip of Red Foxes (or it is very faint).

I usually take my camera with me when I go check the trail cameras, but earlier this week I was in a hurry and just wanted to make a quick trip. As I headed down slope, I noticed something through the gray tree trunks. I pulled up my binoculars…it was the Red Fox staring at me. It looked at me for a few seconds and then trotted off down toward the creek. Suddenly, three deer, apparently startled by the fox, came running up toward me. It was a doe and two beautiful bucks (the 6 and 8-pointers shown above). They stopped, looked at me, and may have realized I was without camera, so they gave me a nice pose. I decided to wait another day to retrieve the trail cam footage. I hope the other wildlife neighbors will reveal themselves “in person” some day. In the meantime, I’ll let the trail cams tell me who is out there.

Here is a complete list of species recorded this month:

Eastern Gray Squirrel, Eastern Chipmunk, mouse (species unknown), Dark-eyed Junco; American Robin, Hermit Thrush, Pileated Woodpecker, Red-bellied Woodpecker, White-tailed Deer, Raccoon, Virginia Opossum, Red Fox, Coyote, unidentified moths

Canid Chaos

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I am back home in NC now after a great two weeks in Yellowstone. I will post a few more blogs about my trip in the coming days but wanted to start with what I witnessed on my last morning through the park.

sunrise

Sunrise on my last morning in the park

The day started with an expletive when I realized at 4:30 a.m. that the power was off in Silver Gate. I had enjoyed my stay at the Log Cabin Cafe cabins but was bummed that I would need to finish packing by headlamp and, worse yet, might have no shower for my long day of plane rides home. But, there was enough hot water to get the shower, and as I got into the car, I was greeted by a spectacular sunrise. It was going to be a great morning after all.

Bull Moose browsing on aspen saplings

Bull Moose browsing on aspen saplings

As I approached Round Prairie I could see a car pulled off the road so I slowed and saw a beautiful bull Moose browsing on some aspen saplings. The visitor had been watching the bull feed for about 30 minutes (and it was only 5:30 a.m. when I arrived). I got out and watched for a few minutes as the bull slowly worked its way into some thick tree cover and disappeared from sight. Such are the vagaries of wildlife watching – one minute a great view and the next an animal as large as a horse can vanish for hours by moving only a few feet. Luck was with me this morning.

The clouds thickened as I headed into Lamar Valley. About a mile down the road I could see a gathering of cars on a hill so I stopped to glass the valley to see what was happening. I quickly noticed some ravens and magpies far out across the Lamar River and when I stepped out of the car I heard the alarm barks of a coyote. That probably meant wolves were nearby. After looking near the raven activity I finally saw canids including the unmistakable black color of a wolf. It appeared that the wolves were digging and that was probably bad news for the coyotes. I drove on and found out that the three wolves were digging out a coyote den. As there was no place to pull over I kept driving with plans to check on several things I wanted to see in the area known as Little America before heading for the airport.

Black Wolf out in valley

Black wolf out in valley

The dark skies were not great for photography, so, after spending some time watching a bison herd, I decided to drive back to Lamar one last time to check on the wolf-coyote saga. From the highest pullout I could see a black wolf a mile or more away headed down the valley. A half mile beyond me were about 50 people out watching. I drove beyond the crowd hoping the wolf would continue down the valley toward the den site a couple of miles beyond. When I stopped I could see the wolf was carrying something – a coyote pup. I later found out that this black wolf is a two year old female and is a persistent animal – she did the bulk of the digging at the coyote den (for over 45 minutes) while the other two wolves stood guard. She killed this pup and was carrying it back toward the wolf den with pups a few miles away.

Wolf running close to us

Wolf running by me as I wait for black wolf

I, along with two other people, had positioned myself down the road ahead of the crowd in an area where I anticipated the black wolf heading. While I was setting up my camera, I saw a blur out of the corner of my eye – it was a wolf running full speed between me and the river! The black wolf was far across the river so we were all startled by this close animal – and this wolf was being pursued by two coyotes.

Coyote chasing wolf 2

Coyote chasing wolf

I quickly spun the camera and fired a few shots and managed to capture a couple of somewhat blurry images before they were all out of sight. The three of us looked at each other and appeared stunned at what had just happened. I am guessing this wolf was being chased by the coyote pair that had just lost their den in a somewhat unusual turnabout of roles with the coyotes being the pursuers instead of the pursued. The images here of the other wolves are heavily cropped – these of the running wolf and coyote are not cropped at all, showing how close they were. Apparently the wolf had crossed the river far downstream beyond our view and was being chased along our side of the river when she blew by us.

Black wolf with Coyote pup 3

Black wolf with Coyote pup

After catching my breath I turned my attention back to the black wolf who was approaching on the far side of the river carrying her prey. She moved quickly down the valley and then dropped the pup, looked back, and began wagging her tail.

Black Wolf and Big Gray 1

Two wolves across Lamar River

I looked up from the viewfinder and saw a big gray wolf approaching ( I think this is the male of the group). After a brief greeting, the black wolf picked the pup up again and they moved on down the valley. The male turned and headed over a knoll and the black female continued on toward the river in the direction of the den.

Black wolf with Coyote pup crossing river

Black wolf with Coyote pup getting ready to cross river

From my vantage point I saw the wolf approach the river and come out on the other side. By this time, many of the cars from down the valley had come down to try to see the wolf so there were people and cars on both sides of one of the mile-long no stopping zones that the park created along the road to allow the wolves to safely travel to and from their den site. When the black wolf finally crossed it did not have the pup carcass. I imagine it  cached it somewhere amongst the willow flats along the river to be retrieved at a later time. I saw this same pack do that earlier in the week with a Pronghorn fawn they killed – the gray female carried the fawn’s body several hundred yards and buried it in an aspen grove.

Such is the cycle of life in Yellowstone. I heard people commenting on what we all just witnessed – most felt some sorrow for the coyote pup but were still thrilled at what we saw. This is part of the drama that is played out every day in this incredible place and awaits you if you simply take the time to observe. It is hard to put into words how it makes you feel – a mix of emotions and awe. But the drama of nature happens all around us every day if we only stop and look. As I am writing this, there is a Gray Squirrel out my window, perched precariously on a thin branch and reaching up and grabbing some Viburnum berries to eat. Granted, it is not a wolf with prey, but it is special nonetheless. One thing I have noticed over the years is that trips to places like Yellowstone, where we can more easily witness the behavior of wild creatures, helps us to better observe and appreciate the small wonders of nature back home. And that may be the most important lesson we can learn from this magical place.