Written by Lisa Browning
Author, educator and musician David Rankine did not set out to study coyotes. One day while walking in Inverhuron Provincial Park (something he did for spiritual solace), David engaged in a thought exercise, asking himself, “If I had to survive here in the park for a year, where would I build my home and what would it look like?” His answer was simple. He knew he would choose a spot close to the network of trails, but hidden, dug into the side of an old tree-covered sand dune, south facing and sheltered from the wind.
David walked to the spot he had chosen in his mind and, as synchronicity would have it, he found a freshly excavated coyote den. He was immediately hooked. He had no idea that coyotes were present in the park, and apparently had been for a very long time.
That discovery led to the purchase of a trail camera, which David set up to watch the mouth of the den. He was awarded two days later with several photos of coyotes entering and leaving the den.
A week later, David moved the camera to a new position and was again rewarded with more photos. At this point he started to keep a log book, and what started out as casual observation led to an extensive study of their habits (family life, hunting and play) and specifically the timing of their movements. It also led to the publication of The Two Bays Pack: The Coyotes of Inverhuron, published by One Thousand Trees in 2024.
I recently caught up with David, and talked about his experiences with the coyotes. Two questions in particular came to mind:
Q1: You referred to this at one time as “searching for coyotes to find myself.” Can you elaborate on what you meant by that?
David: When at the park, I am totally present with a mind uncluttered by worry or anxiety. I become a bigger version of myself, very human and closer to what us humans have been for 99% of our existence. I am quite simply in a state of perfect “being” embedded in the landscape instead of merely passing through.
Q2: What is the greatest lesson your experiences with the coyotes have taught you?
David: The coyotes have taught me that play matters (they collect ‘ toys” and engage in daily sessions of play), family and community matters (the whole pack engages in the raising of one litter of pups) but the greatest lesson of all, which was more of a glorious affirmation for me, is that love matters and every individual matters. This was displayed by one male coyote who took care of and hunted for his mate after she had been shot and was unable to hunt. Not only did he hunt for her, but he walked beside her at the speed she could manage. He was bonded to her and coyotes are bonded by love. We should be more like coyotes!
The Two Bays Pack: The Coyotes of Inverhuron is available from the One Thousand Trees bookstore at https://www.ottbookstore.com/product-page/the-two-bays-pack-the-coyotes-of-inverhuron. Also, as part of the upcoming “All Creatures Great and Small” series of events, David will be giving a presentation about his experiences with the coyotes, at Harcourt Church in Guelph, on Sunday, March 23. Details can be found here: https://www.ottbookstore.com/_files/ugd/ddb074_fe27fe7988f44f658206489de19e5a70.pdf
