Mother of coyote attack victim pleads for the lives of the coyotes
Thu, Nov 05 2009 at 1:06 PM EST
Read more: ANIMAL RESEARCH, WILDLIFE
DON'T KILL THE COYOTES: Mother of Taylor Mitchell, the rising folk singer killed by coyotes last week, says please spare the coyotes. (Photo: Taylor Mitchell) The mother of Taylor Mitchell, the 19-year-old up-and-coming Canadian folk singer who was attacked by two coyote’s last Tuesday, has requested that the coyotes be spared.
The New York Times reports that Mitchell responded to her daughter’s death saying, “We take a calculated risk when spending time in nature’s fold — it’s the wildlife’s terrain,” she wrote. “When the decision had been made to kill the pack of coyotes, I clearly heard Taylor’s voice say, ‘Please don’t, this is their space.’ She wouldn’t have wanted their demise, especially as a result of her own.”
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DiggWow! What an amazing perspective on all life, not just human life, she must have!
Unfortunately by the time Mitchell had made her statement, a Parks Canada conservation officer had already killed one coyote that was exhibiting aggressive behavior and one of the police officers at the scene claims to have wounded another one.
As an avid outdoorsman myself, I know that attacks by wild animals are rare indeed. The Huffington Post asked wildlife biologist Bob Bancroft about the incident, who said, "It's very unusual and is not likely to be repeated," Bancroft said. "We shouldn't assume that coyotes are suddenly going to become the big bad wolf."
Bancroft also stressed that coyote attacks are extremely rare and Mitchell was most likely mistaken for a deer or other prey.
The attack happened when Taylor Mitchell was hiking solo on a trail in Cape Breton Highlands National Park in Nova Scotia. She was airlifted to Halifax hospital and died of her injuries on Wednesday morning.
The trail where the attack occurred is reportedly still closed, and a memorial fund has been set up in Mitchell’s name. You can donate through her website.
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