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Coyote

Coyotes are true symbols of American wilderness. They have populated the plains and deserts of the American West for over a million years. Many Indigenous cultures revered the coyote and attributed savvy and clever characteristics to the animal. In Navajo mythology, the coyote has many roles, from trickster to beneficent, and from creator to agent of chaos. Anglo pioneers and ranchers had a more narrow view of this wild animal. They largely considered the coyote vermin and have been in heavy conflict with it ever since. At the request of ranchers, the US government established the Bureau of Scientific Survey, which sought to eradicate coyotes, wolves, and other predators to safeguard their livestock. Using a wide range of poisons including strychnine, the Bureau killed more than 6.5 million coyotes between 1947 and 1956.

But the coyote is the ultimate survivor, and has truly embraced its role as the trickster. Coyotes have evolved with tools to survive persecution. When harassed, the coyote will abandon its pack habits and spread out to operate as individuals. This helps prevent the eradication of a pack, and has allowed the coyote to spread from its once exclusively western habitat to populate different regions across the US. Coyotes have also developed an adaptation to grow their litter sizes when their populations are under pressure. Dan Flores, author of Coyote America, posits that the coyote’s howl is a tool used to determine local population size. When a coyote howls, it is usually answered by other coyotes in the area. When a howl goes unanswered, this could signal a decrease in coyotes, triggering a response that can double and triple a litter size.

Today, coyotes continue to be persecuted in alarming numbers, but they persist and thrive. They have adapted to exist in urban areas like Los Angeles, Chicago, and New York City. In cities, coyotes have found a habitat where they are not poisoned or shot. Here they survive on small wild and domestic mammals, birds, carrion, and food scraps. Humans have contributed to the coyote’s expansion by drastically reducing their natural predators like wolves and mountain lions. By trying to rid the landscape of coyotes, we have inadvertently pressured them to spread out and multiply.

If you pulled the coyote card, it’s time to flip the script on the forces that be. Redirect negative energies back on themselves. Whatever outside forces are weighing you down, misleading you, or distracting you, use them as stepping stones to get ahead.

CONTRARY

If you pulled the coyote upside down, it’s time to think about its fission-fusion behavior. At times, pack dynamics pay off. Food, protection, and social endeavors are easier with a group. But sometimes it’s necessary to splinter off. Lone wolf tactics can be beneficial to the individual and to the group. Group up, or peel off.

— J B J

Greater Roadrunner

IThe greater roadrunner may look a touch goofy, but it is a complete BOSS. Roadrunners can outrun a faster-than-average human with speeds of up to 18 mph, kill and eat rattlesnakes, and snack on scorpions. These critters have mastered desert living. After a cold desert night, they can expose dark patches of skin on their backs to warm up. They also have multiple water-saving adaptations to beat the heat, including glands near their eyes that extract salt from their blood and excrete it as drips from their nostrils. This saves them a lot of water compared to our way of eliminating salts through urine.

As a member of the cuckoo family, the roadrunner has zygodactyl feet: two toes face forward and two face back, giving it an X-shaped footprint. Some Pueblo-dwelling peoples use the X as a sacred symbol to ward off evil. The symmetry of the X footprint means that you can’t tell whether the roadrunner is coming or going, making it difficult for evil spirits to track it down.

If the roadrunner ran across your path, congratulations! Spotting roadrunners is considered good luck for some Native American tribes, and their strength and endurance are revered by many. Make a list of all of your strengths and take a moment to give thanks for them. Then get ready to give thanks for all of the good things coming your way.

CONTRARY

If the roadrunner appeared upside down, it may be telling you that you’re tough like the roadrunner—but are you too tough? Do you find it hard to ask for help? Are you happy to support others all of the time, but don’t allow others to support you? Consider accepting help from the next friend, family member, partner, or colleague who offers it. Start small and see how it feels. You know how good it can feel to support your people. Let them experience love and joy by having the opportunity to help and support you.

— A S