Enjoying the Sun COYOTE Canis latrans ©Laura Quick Coyotes fence fight with my dogs now nearly every night and I see them wandering the hillsides here nearly every day. Since the fires they seem larger, bolder and certainly less afraid of human. Coyotes evolved in North America 5.3 million years ago. Many of the other species of canids, like jackals, wolves, and wild dogs, spread around the globe via the land bridges connecting America to Europe and Asia. But coyotes never left and evolved as a distinctive species about a million years ago. Physically, they resemble the golden jackal, from which coyotes only separated about 800,000 years ago, so they’re fairly close relatives. There’s only about a 4 percent genetic difference between the two. This one was hanging out in the Sonora Desert where food is plentiful. #coyote #canislatrans #©lauraquick #canidae #wilddogsofinstagram #sonorandesert #sunbathing #naturephotography #arizona #carnivora #mammalia #northamerica #adaptable #leastconcern #neighborhoodpests https://www.instagram.com/p/B9VI9_bnivO/?igshid=1vmt64i50k7n2
