In my driveway on Sunday morning.

Look at this handsome fellow. My neighbor took these shots and just sent them to me. Have to make sure my Cairn Terrier doesn't get loose......

Attachment 9141Attachment 9142

That IS a good-looking coyote!
I've been joking that the Ben Franklin quote needs a 21st century update:

In this world nothing can be said to be certain, except death and taxes. And coyotes.

WoW! Where did they see this?

My next door neighbor took it upon herself to have that Coyote you seen in the photo killed by a bow and arrow hunter (discharging a firearm is illegal in Fairfax County where I live) once she saw the same photo you see here on the forum. This has caused quite an uproar in the neighborhood, with strong opinions on each side of that debate. While not illegal to kill a Coyote in the state of Virginia - in fact the State will pay a $ 50 bounty per carcass, hunting is against our Homeowner covenants that affect the (81) homes in our community.

Fairfax County, a suburb of Washington DC has over 1.1 million people in it. The community I live in within the county has homes all on 5 acres, so we live in what is essentially a park environment in what is otherwise a fairly urbanized region. People that buy homes in this community like the fact we have wildlife such as Hawks, Owls, Eagles (yes!), Red foxes, Coyotes, Deer (well, maybe not so much the deer), Raccoons, Possums, Chipmunks, all manner of snakes, etc. We have what is basically an East Coast ecosystem of nature and that includes all the wild critters. This woman is a relative newcomer to the community and prefers a sterile environment with no danger to her pets. While I didn't get involved in the community firestorm over the killing of the Coyote because I can see both sides of the argument, I personally believe that it was wrong of her to have it destroyed unless it presents a clear and dangerous challenge to the homeowners here - which this Coyote never did. As far as I could tell, our squirrel and mouse populations was down from years past and I assume it was one reason why.

She has earned the wrath of many in the community by putting out a post that she had the Coyote killed. Certainly she should not have gone public with that fact - seemed she thought she did everyone a public service, instead about 3/4 of the community has turned against her and will harbor a grudge towards her for years to follow. What she should have done was used our community email list to say that if the Coyote was not removed, she would take action on it - that would have given the fifty or so homeowners who now loathe her an opportunity to take humane action and have it relocated out to the mountains west of us.

Wow, if it wasn't bothering people why do that. Hopefully the HOA fined her for breaking the covenants.

This is just tragic. Some people are so alienated from Nature that the first thing they think when blessed--yes, "blessed"--with such a sighting (and that is one handsome coyote) is "kill."