Not Pretty
by Pete Bengeyfield
This was pretty gruesome, but how can you not shoot it? I think the lamb was sick, because they're usually not down on the river, and the coyote caught it out on the ice. I didn't see the initial attack, but instead of trying to kill the lamb, the coyote just kept chewing at its face. This went on for about 15 minutes, until the coyote went over and lay down, leaving the lamb alone to sit there. It would have been bloodier, but the extreme cold (-37F the next morning) probably clotted it pretty quick. I stayed until it was too dark (and too cold) to shoot, but nothig else happened. The next morning the lamb was just bits of hair scattered about the ice and a number of coyotes were cleaning up.
Lamar Valley, Yellowstone.
Sony 100 alpha, 600 f4 w/ 1.4, f 5.6 @ meter, ISO 200
Comments
18 commentsWhat an amazing shot. Darwin
kk
Ken Archer
Life is cruel and death is hard. This photo certainly says it all. Thanks for posting and congrats on the EP.
Man, I hate when wild dogs tear my face off.
Pete D.
Great image!
It shows how incredibly tough life can be in the wild, but I hope that this doesn't spark any negative feelings towards coyotes. The little fellow is just getting some food without the intention of inflicting more pain than necessary. However, it surprises me that he targets the snout like this. You'd think there are more nutritious parts to feed on and that the snout could potentially still be risky, especially in the beginning. Sheep have pretty strong biters too after all...
Well done on a very tough subject!