204 WATCHED BY WILD ANIMALS 
see a coyote trot leisurely across and just be- 
fore he disappeared in the woods a lion appear 
on the opposite side of the opening, following 
contentedly along the trail of the coyote. 
The next day I again saw this friendly pair, but 
on this occasion the lion was leading and the 
coyote following. Afterward I saw their tracks 
a number of times. 
Just why they were associated in this friendly 
manner we can only conjecture. It will be 
readily seen that the coyote, which has all the 
wisdom of a fox, might follow a game-hog lion 
about and thus, with little effort, get a sub- 
stantial and satisfactory food supply. But why 
the lion should willingly associate with a coyote 
is not quite clear. Perhaps this association 
proved to be of some advantage to the lion in 
his killing, or it may have been just one of those 
peculiar, unaccounted-for attachments occasion- 
ally seen between animals. 
In any discussion concerning the mountain 
lion, or, for that matter, any living animal, 
hardly can the last word be said concerning the 
character of the individual of the species. 
Individuals vary, and now and then a mountain 
lion, as well as a human being, shows marked 
and peculiar traits. These may be the result 
of unusual alertness and sheer curiosity, or 
they may be subnormal, and cruel or murderous. 
