Richard Moore Outdoor Report: Coyote Chorus

RIO GRANDE VALLEY, Texas (ValleyCentral) — A ranch country sunrise would surely be diminished without the primordial howling of wild coyotes.

Out of the cloaking fog, a coyote suddenly materializes and abruptly halts atop a slight rise peering intently from side to side warily scanning surroundings for prey or potential threat while keenly listening with erect pointed ears and testing air for scent…then vanishes back into the thorny chaparral.

That’s the way of coyotes; you hear them more than see them.

Sometimes, they slip into a remote waterhole for a furtive sip before quickly fleeing or offering a brief glimpse from behind concealing foliage.

It is not surprising coyotes are skittish, as they are relentlessly shot, trapped, and poisoned while being persecuted as wanton predators.

Their reputation as potential killers of livestock from chickens to calves is well deserved. However, they are omnivores and primarily subsist on fruiting native plants, rabbits, and rodents.

Coyotes above all, are magnificent survivors. In a world of ever-shrinking wildlands and disappearing apex predators such as wolves and mountain lions, the wily coyotes have actually expanded their range throughout North America.

Despite common appellations of scruffy, mangy scavenger, healthy South Texas coyotes sporting winter gray coats flecked with cinnamon and marvelously bushy tails tipped in black are beautiful creatures and an integral part of the web of life.

If you happen to get a chance to peer into those riveting yellow-gold eyes generations of untempered wildness will be strikingly revealed glowing with elusive mystery and freedom.

Even if you don’t get to see them all the time, a coyote chorus is thrilling to hear, and the South Texas outdoors would just not be the same without these cunning creatures serenading the spirit of the wild.