Bad Coyote

It’s new, it’s fearless, and it’s very real. A hybrid type of coyote, thought to be part wolf, has migrated to Eastern Canada. After a deadly mauling in Cape Breton, said to be the first such fatal attack against an adult human, alarm spreads across Nova Scotia. Trappers, scientists, sheep farmers and the mother of the 19-year-old victim, Taylor Mitchell, weigh in. Increasing media coverage and reports of coyote attacks and sightings prompts the provincial government to issue a controversial bounty for dead coyotes. To some, the only good coyote is a dead one; but others call for a more measured approach, seeking mutual respect between humans and animals. The central irony is not lost: this new breed, called a “coywolf” by some, has replaced a wolf population previously driven out by predatory humans. A trenchant analysis of the politics—and the price—of living and playing close to nature.