Coyote howling1/22/2024 ![]() In his story, Wren describes a ghoulish, but pragmatic scene of French Legionnaires propping up their fallen comrades to make the enemy think their army was bigger than it was. This phenomenon of one animal sounding like many is called the Beau Geste effect, after the novel authored by Percival Christopher Wren. For example, how can two or three coyotes howling at night sound like a dozen or more? Even the well-studied sounds of birds and coyotes have many secrets to reveal and mysteries to solve. For example, scientists have recently learned that some animals we thought were silent, such as turtles and fish, communicate with their own unique sounds. The dynamics of animal sounds are more fascinating the more we learn about them. I wondered whether these were the same or different animals. It was coming from a distance, beyond the woods behind our house. Later in the evening when I took the dogs out before bedtime, I heard the chorus again. The dog never lifted his head from whatever he was sniffing. ![]() It seemed to come from the field beyond our neighbor’s house. I stepped outside with one of our dogs at about 8:00 pm earlier this fall and almost immediately heard a piercing wail followed by a wild series of yaps, chatters and yelps. Box 8099, Walnut Creek, CA 94596.Illustration by Doug Pifer (courtesy of the Pennsylvania Game Commission) Joan Morris’ column runs five days a week in print and online. Keeping roosters is against the law and while they may not rush out, they will eventually deal with the violation. If talking to them hasn’t worked, then yes, you can call code enforcement or animal control. A rooster is not required for the hens to lay eggs - only to fertilize them if they want to raise more chickens, and because there are restrictions on the number of chickens one can have, that doesn’t seem practical. It actually will be to their advantage to do so, however. Many times, people selling chickens aren’t good at sexing them - something that can be difficult when they are chicks - and so your neighbors may accidentally have gotten a rooster and are now so in love with the guy they don’t want to get rid of him. Rooster’s owners, which other neighbors have tried, what can we do to return a little quiet to our mornings? Will code enforcement come out for the rooster?ĭEAR ELLIE: In San Jose city limits, people can own up to six chickens, but they are not allowed to keep a rooster older than 4 months. We are within San Jose city limits, and other than talking with Mr. Rooster starts crowing most mornings about 6:30, sometimes a little earlier, and can continue crowing for hours. I know having chickens in San Jose is OK, but I thought having a rooster was a no-no. I suspect they had killed or found something tasty and weren’t about to let morning them stop them from getting a good meal.ĭEAR JOAN: One of our neighbors has chickens and a rooster. Is it unusual for coyotes to be howling like this in the morning? Do you think the presence of my dogs could have prompted it? Was I right to be concerned about them possibly going after my small dogs, even with me there?ĭEAR REGINA: Coyotes normally hunt from dusk until dawn, but it’s not unusual for them to be out in the day. I became very concerned about my dogs, scooped one of them up and got the other one to quickly follow me as we turned and walked rapidly back to our house. As we neared the next corner, I suddenly heard the loud howls of what sounded like a pack of coyotes, coming from the woods right behind the houses. There was no one around, and no car in sight, and as we walked down the street it was quiet enough to hear a pin drop. ![]() On the last morning of our stay, I took my two small dogs for an early walk about 8:30 a.m., and let them walk without a leash as the streets had been plowed from earlier snows and there was a 5-foot wall of snow on either side of the street. DEAR JOAN: Recently, we rented a house near Lake Tahoe in a community surrounded by woods.
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