Coyote in a Field of Silage; Point Reyes National Seashore
Coyote, Point Reyes National Seashore
I saw this coyote walking through this silage field a few weeks ago. Silage consists of any of a number of plants that are mowed in the spring when still green for feeding cattle. I have written about it in the past. One problem with it is that when it is mowed in the spring it results in the deaths of any number of ground or near-ground nesting birds and their offspring. It also kills small mammals that live in the tall, protective vegetation and larger mammals like deer fawns, who are wired to stay still even when a noisy mower is approaching. They stay still because they aren’t very fast on their “feet” during that first week. Same applies to the rest of the deer family (elk and moose) and to pronghorns. Not bison calves though. Those bison calves, aka “red dogs,” can run with their moms from birth.
