It was not surprising to encounter coyotes in the primeval forests of North America. After all, they could be encountered in big cities. It was normal to encounter them in the forest.
No one knew exactly how many coyotes there were in North America. People only knew that in 2013 alone, the US Department of Agriculture funded the killing of more than 70,000 coyotes and 4 million other wild animals for reasons such as protecting endangered species, protecting public safety, and controlling wild animal diseases.
These reasons were actually very easy to understand. Some animals were very adapted to the natural environment, so they multiplied in large numbers, and the living space of some endangered animals would be crowded. For example, the spotted owl was no match for the foreign owl population, and its population was getting smaller and smaller. If you wanted to protect the spotted owl, you had to hunt the foreign owl population.
Coyotes are one of the most successful species in North America. They have a strong survival ability and adapt well to both natural and urban environments. It is normal for them to be rampant. They are spread all over 49 states except Hawaii, posing a serious threat to agricultural production, public safety, and endangered species. Therefore, the United States often holds coyote hunting competitions, but if you want to kill coyotes, you must have legal documents and procedures, and you can't kill them at will.
Father Yang said that coyotes rarely attacked people, which was correct, but few did not mean none. In fact, in the past few decades, there had been more than 300 coyote attacks in California, mostly targeting children and occasionally adults.
There was once a 19-year-old girl who was killed by a coyote. Zhang Zian once worried that Megan would also be kissed by a coyote. Now he knew that Megan was caught by Peter Lee.
He heard that coyotes were lingering nearby, and his heart was half relieved. Although he did not know how many coyotes there were, at least it was better than encountering a black bear.
Famous did not call the police loudly because it had seen coyotes and knew that a single coyote was weak. Even if a group came, it should not be able to beat the elfins.
But what was the other animal?
The smell was not completely unfamiliar to Famous. It had smelled a similar smell in the forest, but it did not know what kind of animal the owner of this smell was.
The cat elfins also left the tent. They heard that it was not a black bear, but another strange animal. Their curiosity was aroused. Since they were awake, they might as well go and watch the fun.
Famous walked in front, leading the way in the direction of the deer.
Zhang Zian took the night vision goggles and flashlights. Of course, he could not forget the bear spray and the Taser gun. He planned to follow the elfins.
He had just taken two steps when he noticed that Xinghai was still squatting by the campfire and didn't go with the other cats.
"Xinghai, aren't you going to take a look?" he asked.
Xinghai stretched, wagged his tail, tilted his head to look at the bonfire, and said, "Meow, the fire is going out."
As soon as Zhang Zian left the tent, he saw that the bonfire was about to go out. He had slept for a few hours, and he had not added any firewood in between. There was only some charcoal left in the bonfire. In the gray ashes, there was a faint dark red glow and a little warmth.
He has been thinking about the coyote in his mind, plus he just woke up from his sleep and saw that the campfire was about to go out. He just "saw" it, and there were no fluctuations in his mind.
So what if the fire was going out?
The purpose of lighting the bonfire was to drive away the beasts while sleeping and prevent them from approaching. Now that he and the elfins were awake, the deterrent effect of the bonfire on the beasts was far less than the bear spray.
The air was very cold, and Zhang Zian rubbed his hands. He wanted to see what was going on immediately – how many coyotes were there, and what other animals besides coyotes had come. But Xinghai was squatting by the bonfire, as if she wanted to keep warm, so he squatted down again, picked up the dry branches that had not been burned, and put them into the bonfire.
"Yes, the fire is going out, so let it burn again," he said.
Because it had just rained the night before, coupled with the fog, the branches were more moist. After putting them into the bonfire, not only did they not burn, but the thick water vapor made the bonfire that was about to go out even dimmer, and it could be extinguished at any time.
He had no choice but to go back to the backpack and use the flashlight to look for solid alcohol inside. After finding a can, he cut out a small piece from it, smeared it evenly on a dead branch, lit it with a lighter, and stuffed it into the bonfire. He kept exhaling through his mouth to help the air circulate and bring more oxygen to the bonfire.
With solid alcohol to fuel the combustion, the bonfire quickly became stronger, and the flames crackled. From time to time, there was a loud popping sound, and sparks were flying everywhere. It was the sound of the remaining water inside the branches exploding into steam.
"Xinghai, don't get too close to the fire. Be careful of the sparks splashing on you," he reminded.
Xinghai obediently moved away from the bonfire, and its silver-gray eyes reflected the red flames. It said happily, "Meow! It's so warm!"
"Then … you stay here by the fire. I'll go and see what they are doing."
He was still very worried about the elfins who were watching the fun. After all, in addition to the coyotes, there was an unknown animal. It would be good if it was not a large beast.
"Meow! Xinghai, go too!"
To his surprise, Xinghai seemed to have lost interest in the bonfire. It wagged its tail and followed him.
So … it didn't want to be by the fire?
Zhang Zian was a little confused, but forget it. It was good to light the bonfire again. It would save him the trouble of coming back after watching the fun.
He and Xinghai trotted to meet the other elfins.
He did not dare to turn on the flashlight, fearing that the flashlight would attract the coyotes. Anyway, he had night vision, so it was not difficult to move.
From a distance, he saw the scary bright eyes of the elfins, so he lightened his footsteps.
In addition, in the woods upstream of the stream, there were also several pairs of eyes shining. They seemed to be planning something bad for the herd of deer.
That must be the suburban wolf pack.
Coyotes, like most canines, were also social animals, but they tended to forage alone in the city. In the wild, sometimes they foraged alone, and sometimes they hunted in groups. There was no fixed form, which also showed that they were easy to adapt to the environment.
"One, two, three, four, five, six …"
Zhang Zian roughly counted, and he could see a total of six pairs of shining eyes. Maybe there were others in the woods.
These coyotes were probably also attracted by the smell of the deer and planned to come over to eat, but they had not found a suitable opportunity to do so.
But … what was the other animal?
Zhang Zian could only see the shining eyes through the night vision device. He could not determine whether the six pairs of eyes included animals other than coyotes, but from common sense, there should not be other animals in the suburban wolf pack, right?
Woo ~
Woo ~
Zhang Zian didn't know which coyote raised its head, but they suddenly whined.
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