About 25 years ago, my daughter and I were horseback riding in Yellowstone National Park. It was early morning, fresh and cool. We were on a trail that opened into a large meadow when suddenly from the rocks above us a pack of 10 or 12 coyotes appeared. They paused to look down at us and then ran directly across our path into the meadow. They were beautiful — large, strong, fast. At first we thought they were wolves, but the ranger guide said coyotes. He said in recent years, with ample food, they were growing larger and modifying their behavior to hunt as a pack like wolves. Seeing them was a thrilling experience, but menacing.

My only other close experience with coyotes was at Lake Tahoe. Our family has had a little cabin on the west shore for 45 years. Close neighbors were Mr. and Mrs. Simms, a lovely older couple who had two dachshunds, Hansel and Gretel. Each evening the Simms were in the habit of taking “H and G” for a walk on a narrow roadway behind their home. One evening Gretel ran on ahead and was joined by a small coyote who seemed friendly. The two played a bit and then the coyote led Gretel into the shrubbery where the coyote pack waited. They attacked and killed her while the Simms yelled and threw rocks.

Are coyotes a species we should encourage to multiply on Vashon? At Tahoe and in other areas the wild animals may encroach on people, but they can retreat into the mountains to live as they should in the wild. An island has water borders coyotes don’t cross easily. An increase in their population here will mean more close encounters with humans, pets and livestock. To allow this is naive and foolish.

— Sheila Elliott