266 
THE COYOTE . 
pleasures and privations of a nomad existence. On account of Ms wolfish ancestry, lie was 
rather apt to run off and play with the young W olves instead of attending to his duty, but 
was never induced to throw off his allegiance. On one occasion the dog saved the life of his 
master by lying close to him on a bitterly freezing night, and with his long warm fur preserving 
him from the terrible death by frost. 
The Wolf is a rather prolific animal, producing from three to nine young at a litter. In 
January the mother Wolf begins to prepare her habitation for the expected inmates, a task 
in which she is protected, and perhaps assisted, by her mate, who has won her in fair fight 
from his many rivals. He attaches himself solely to one single mate, and never leaves her 
until the young Wolves are able to shift for themselves. The nest in which the little family 
is nurtured is softly and warmly lined with dry moss and with the fur of the mother, wMch 
she pulls from her own body. March is the usual month for the appearance of the little 
family, and they remain under the maternal protection for seven or eight months. They 
begin to eat meat at four or five weeks of age, and are taught by their parents to join 
in the chase. 
In the family Canidce (the Dogs), species are pretty evenly distributed over the two 
continents, America and Asia, In North America there are ten species, and in South 
America nine. 
The Dog family is well marked by two groups : the Wolves and Foxes. 
The Gray Wolf ( Canis occidental is). This species is now regarded as distinct from the 
European form, though naturalists formerly claimed their identity. 
Prince Maximilian, of New Wied, Germany, in his “Journey to North America, 1841,” 
says: “This Wolf is”— speaking of the form seen by him in the Western Territories— 
“distinguished from that of the Eastern States— wMch resembles the European— by the 
somewhat smaller size, shorter, thicker snout, somewhat shorter ears, and by the want of the 
dark strips run nin g down the legs in the European species ; also by the color, varying from 
the ordinary Wolf s-gray to the pure white.” This Wolf brings forth in April a litter of from 
four to nine young, in a burrow. 
In Florida, a variety of- this Wolf * is found, having a jet black pelt. Audubon states that 
this kind was very abundant in Henderson, Kentucky, his place of residence, and mentions an 
instance of the complete domestication of one of these animals. 
A singular result of the frequent discharge of fire-arms in the region inhabited by the 
Coyotes, is seen in their inquisitive habits. So ravenous are they, the discharge of a gun has 
* ]y 0 t e by the Editor— The Prairie Wolf ( Cams latrans) is intermediate in size between the Fox and the Wolf, 
resembling the former in the sharpness of its muzzle, and the latter in the form and character of the tail. The description 
above referring to the “Coyote,” which has been named Canis ochropus, Esch., applies only to a variety, not to a distinct 
species. The Prairie Wolf is called also Coyote. Lewis and Clark named it Burrowing Dog. The terms Canis ochropus 
and Canis latrans are therefore synonymous. G . 
Dr. Coues has had most excellent opportunities to study this animal, being stationed, as U. b. Army burgeon, at 
various posts near which this creature abounds. He gives us, in his usual scholarly and interesting language, the following 
account : “The Prairie or Barking Wolf ( Canis latrans, Say), is by far the most abundant carnivorous animal m Arizona, as 
it also is in almost every part of the West. Practically, the Coyote is a nuisance ; theoretically, he commands a certain 
degree of admiration, viewing his irrepressible positivity of character and his versatile nature. If his genius has nothing 
essentially noble or lofty about it, it is undeniable that few animals possess so many and so various attributes, or act them 
out with such dogged perseverance. Ever on the alert, and keenly alive to a sense of danger, he yet exhibits the cooles, 
effrontery when his path crosses ours. The main object of his life seems to be the satisfying of a hunger which is always 
craving and to this aim all his cunning, impudence, and audacity are mainly directed.” * * 
“ It is a singular fact that the howling of two or three Wolves gives an impression that a score are engaged, so many, 
so long-drawn are the notes, and so uninterruptedly are they continued by one individual after another A short, s mrp 
bark is sounded, followed by several more in quick succession, the time growing faster and the pitch higher, till they run 
together into a long-drawn, lugubrious howl in the highest possible key. The same strain is taken up again and again by 
different members of the pack, while from a greater distance the deep, melancholy baying of the more wary Lobo breasi, 
to add to the discord, till the very leaves of the trees seem quivering to the inharmonious sounds. It is not true, as asse t d 
by some, that the cSyotes howl only just after dark and at daylight. They are rarely, if ever, heard in the daytime, though 
frequently to be seen, especially in secluded places. * .. m-u A 
“ There is abundant evidence that the Coyote will cross and bear fertile offspring with the domestic do & . 
hybrid is said to possess the bad qualities of both parents, and the good ones of neither.” It brings forth m ay, v 
or six puppies. 
