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One day Coyote was going along when he noticed
someone was sitting in a tree ahead, on the path.
As
he drew closer, he saw that it was Bobcat
sitting
there. Coyote stopped and was wondering what
Bobcat could be doing, when he noticed a herd
of cattle were meandering down the path towards
him. Coyote walked off the path a little way
and
sat down on a hillside, waiting for the cows to
pass.
All of a sudden, as the cows passed underneath
the tree Bobcat was perched in, Coyote saw
Bobcat
jump out of the tree and land on the back of a
fine
fat cow. The cow bawled as Bobcat wrestled her
to
the ground, and then he killed her and began
skinning
the
body.
Coyote was very impressed, and determined to
have
Bobcat teach him how to catch cows like that.
He
sauntered up and sat down next to Bobcat.
"Howdy, Bobcat. That was a pretty impressive
way
you caught this here cow," Coyote drawled."Oh,
go
away Coyote. Can't you see I'm busy? I don't have
time
for you and your silly ways," Bobcat replied.
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..............."Coyote
Rides"
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Coyote was very
determined to have Bobcat teach him how to catch
such a great dinner.
"Oh, please, I just want to learn your hunting
technique. Can you teach me?" moaned Coyote.
"Coyote, you could never hunt like me. You are too
clumsy and besides, I don't think you'd even be
able
to climb up in a tree." growled Bobcat.
"No, that's not true. I could climb a tree! I'll
climb this one right now!"
So Coyote began climbing up the tree that Bobcat
had just jumped from. He pulled and struggled,
scratching his legs and paws, but after a great
struggle, Coyote managed to get up to the branch
Bobcat
had perched on. All the while, Bobcat continued
skinning his cow, shaking his head and thinking
that
Coyote was only looking for trouble.
When Coyote was all settled on the branch, he
yelled down at Bobcat." Ha! See! You aren't the
only one
who can climb trees! Now, what's the next
step?"
"Coyote, it is really simple," Bobcat spoke with
resignation, knowing Coyote wasn't about to give
up.
"You just wait there until a herd comes along, pick
a fat cow, just jump down on her back and
wrestle her to the ground. It is really quite easy.
It's call bulldogging."
Bobcat was now done skinning his cow, so he packed
up all the meat, bade Coyote farewell, wished
him
good luck and went off back to his camp. When he
left, Coyote immediately started watching for
cows. His stomach was beginning to rumble and
before long he saw a herd of cattle coming up
the trail. He crouched down lower on the branch,
and began selecting the one he wanted. Now
Coyote
had forgotten that he was supposed to get a cow,
and began admiring a large steer with his big
horns.
Coyote decided this was to be the one he would jump
on, so he waited for it to pass underneath the
branch.
As soon as the steer was below Coyote, he jumped
down on his back. But poor Coyote only had the
claws of
a dog, and not claws like a cat, so he slid right
off the steer onto the ground, and the steer was
surprised
and angered, and stomped all over him and gored him
with his horns.
That is why Coyotes hunt from the ground and not
from trees.
.................................................Chiricahua
Apache - retold by Susi Nagoda
Bergquist
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There are a number of stories in the
southwest featuring Coyote and his friend
Bobcat. They explain their facial features
and
other differences. Coyotes and bobcats are
both preditors who share the same hunting
space, are about the same size and eat
pretty much the same thing. For years I
have run a research project studing
coyotes, and at times I have observed the
interactions
of the two carnivors. One one occasion I
observed the Alpha coyote and the bobcat,
who shared territories playing "Bump
Hip",
a very "doggie' game for over 10 minutes,
that I could observe. They seemed to be
enjoying themselves and seemed to be
well
aquaninted with one another, however the
bobcat seemed to have the upper hand.
Perhaps the folkloric friendship is
derived from
this real life relationship.
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