Believe it or not…. This is a photo, not a painting of Coyote
What the photographer, Jerry Mercier, has expressed in this photograph is a sense of Coyote’s belonging to the landscape she is resting in….but not only belonging, but being a part of it.
But it is not only her physical presence, but her song that fills the landscape with a rich and true wholeness. In his book, “The Great Animal Orchestra”, Bernie Krause expresses his thought that the healthier a habitat is, the more “musical” the creatures, and the richer and more diverse their scores. So, sound complexity is a measure of the health of the land.
And in his book he celebrates this amazing symphony that surrounds us…if only we would listen….and we too celebrate its wonder. Enter Coyote ~ the Songdog … Coyote’s Symphony! Do you here it, do you truly hear it…and what it means?
I remember one night many years ago, the loons began to sing on the pond near where I lived. And before I knew it, Coyote could not resist joining in the song….Coyote and Loons in musical duo….it was a magic moment I will never forget!
And what happens when that Symphony is silenced? As I travel around Maine in my work many Maine people have expressed to me a deep sense of loss when the songs of Coyote that they delighted in, were silenced ….when they were cruelly killed…and the silence was empty.
So support the Songs of Nature….do let them be silenced.
