Out of the corner of my eye I saw a coyote hurry by, obscured by the dead thistle growth from last year. That is not so unusual for me — I see coyotes often enough. But then I heard something I have heard only a couple of times before and only very faintly: defensive growling — it was intense this time! I looked over and saw a more dominant coyote sibling bullying his more submissive sibling. The more submissive brother skulked off, as usual, but he also growled and snapped in self-defense. And then he hung around — he was not going to be forced to leave this time! The last photo shows him shortly after the incident, after the dominating sibling departed. This fellow hung around, relaxing and enjoying the turf instead of fleeing. We’ve been rooting for this underdog.
Loud Growling, And Being His Own Man
22 Jan 2011 Leave a comment
in coyote behavior, family interactions, Uncategorized