Coyote in the Meadow

Coyote -- Pinnacles National Park, CA
Canon EOS Rebel T5i, EF-S 55-250mm IS II, 1/1600s, f5.6, ISO: 640

As Pongo and I were leaving Pinnacles National Park this weekend I was lamenting to him how we'd never seen a coyote during any of our visits.  We heard one while camping once, but that was the closest we had come.  Within a minute of my uttering of those words we saw this coyote in the big meadow near the entrance of the park.

This coyote was skittish.  I pulled over when I saw him and had to get out of the car to get to my camera which I'd packed away for the drive home.  When he saw me get out of the car he moved out across the meadow, putting a good deal of distance between us in a very short time.  Although it cost me any shot at a good picture, I was OK with that given their status as undesirable animals in most rural areas of the US.  Personally, I'm a fan, but a lot of folks would like to see then exterminated.