The Coyote is smaller than its close relative, the Gray Wolf. The average male coyote weighs 18 to 44 lbs and the female weighs 15 to 40 lbs. The Coyote's characteristic vocalization is a howl made by solitary individuals. This Coyote was occupying a cozy rock when another Coyote approached. That's when the growling began :)


Coyote is a prominent mythological figure for most Native American tribes, especially those west of the Mississippi. Coyote shares many traits with the mythological figure Raven. Like real coyotes, mythological coyotes are usually notable for their crafty intelligence, stealth, and voracious appetite. However, American Indian coyote characters vary widely from tribe to tribe.

In some Native American Coyote myths, Coyote is a revered culture hero who creates, teaches, and helps humans; in others, he is a sort of antihero who demonstrates the dangers of negative behaviors like greed, recklessness, and arrogance; in still others, he is a comic trickster character, whose lack of wisdom gets him into trouble while his cleverness gets him back out. In some Native Coyote stories, he is even some sort of combination of all three at once.