Respect Coyotes AND Hunting
More years ago than I care to remember, my cousin married this guy who was reportedly quite the coyote hunter. “He got 70 of them last year,” I was told. Wow! I needed to meet this guy. “What kind of call does he use?” I asked innocently. “He don’t use no call. He runs ‘em over with this snowmobile.” That was in 1968.
To this day I’ve never met the cousin-in-law, but I’ve talked with plenty like him. All kill lots of coyotes, but none are coyote hunters. Call me old fashioned, but to me the definition of “hunter” means someone who reads sign, follows tracks and trails, learns the calls, scent markers and behavior patterns of his prey, then uses his knowledge, experience, insights, creativity and woodsmanship to gain a clear shot. The only role mechanized transportation should play in the hunt is getting said hunter into the hunting grounds. Gas-powered machines should not be used to stir up, flush, or chase the prey. Not even the lowly coyote.
The infamous “brush wolf” of the West has long labored under the weight of considerable animosity, much of it deserved. They really do kill and eat lambs, fully grown sheep, mule deer, pronghorns, pet dogs and nearly any other living thing they can get their fangs on. But so do humans. I don’t blame ranchers and other aggrieved parties for hating coyotes, but that’s no justification for every sportsman to despise the species and condemn it to annihilation, fair means or foul.
In hunting camps and sporting goods stores across the country I commonly hear things like this: “Rotten, stinking, murdering coyotes. Goddamn thieving vicious worthless sons-of-bitches.” (Technically, all coyotes are sons and daughters of bitches, but that’s not exactly the intended sentiment.) “Useless, rapacious sons of Satan.” (That from the more poetic crowd.) And worse. As with any prejudice, kids pick up the refrain and the partial myth of the evil coyote is perpetuated. What’s the harm? Despite a hundred years of ceaseless warfare against them -- including aerial gunning and widespread poisoning -- coyotes have not only survived, but thrived. The sportsman/hunter image, unfortunately, has not.
In a time and culture in which “primitive blood sports” are condemned, hunters need to be conscious of their effect on non-hunters. Forget the radical anti-hunters. Like any zealots, they are convinced they have a direct link to God. The bulk of Americans, however, are open to reasonable consideration of the facts. If the facts show that “hunters” unfairly chase coyotes with motorized vehicles, the very act of hunting falls under additional suspicion. It’s difficult enough justifying the shooting of animals whose flesh we don’t eat. If we don’t even hunt them fairly, aren’t we dead in the water? Don’t we lose all credibility? Here are some of the ways we can justify coyote hunting:
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They are extremely common, abundant, widespread and spreading farther.
They are a valuable resource, providing 100 percent natural, biodegradable, non-polluting, perpetually renewable hides and fur perfect for winter wear without the need for oil drilling, shipping, spilling or refining.
They are wary, elusive and a challenge to hunt.
They often severely deplete deer and pronghorn populations in certain areas and/or prevent recovery of these species in suitable habitats.
They often ravage domestic livestock and must be controlled, especially since human-made changes to the land often favor coyotes over prey animals.
If we are the “true conservationists” and guardians of the natural world we claim to be, we should start treating the coyote with respect. It plays an important role in our natural world. This is a remarkably resourceful predator which, against long odds, persists, going about its business of cleaning up carrion, testing and stressing prey species to keep them wary and genetically superior, and preventing the overpopulation of certain species – just as we prevent the overpopulation of coyotes. Admire the coyote for its cunning and toughness, for surviving in high mountain snows, deserts sands, windy grasslands and fetid swamps. Respect this wild dog for its ability to survive. And hunt it fair and square.
