Crow’s Nest: Coyote

By Daniel Barringer, Preserve Manager. Trail camera photos by Alec Moloznik.

Hey, Tim. I see your red fox photos (very nice!) and raise you a coyote. We’ve seen their scat, and Alec has made it his mission to catch a photo of one. We knew they were here (they’re in every county of Pennsylvania, and most major cities nationwide too). But I’ve never heard them calling here—they’re usually quiet when they live among human populations. Alec set the trail camera up on a log across French Creek—yes, the one the kids play on at summer camp.

In addition to red foxes, an opossum, a squirrel, and lots of raccoons, the camera also caught this pair of couples of wood ducks (below, note the females that you might overlook). Also there was one black lab and owner trying to pose the dog on the log. But it’s the coyote that makes the hair on the back of my neck stand up.

Coyotes offer us a tale of resilience, adaptability, and survival that might be useful to us all right now. But of course I also keep our small dog leashed at all times and by my side.