Yellowstone National Park is plowing roadways in preparation for a robust, wildlife-rich spring season.
With this in mind, I'd like to share a photo I took last spring of a coyote walking by tourists who were unaware of its existence while they watched a cinnamon-colored black bear on the other side of the roadway.
Can you detect the tiny animal carefully monitoring the coyote? (Answer is at the bottom of the post.)
Viewers will notice the coyote's path through a lovely meadow brimming with wildflowers alongside a roadway in the northern range.
I've also included photos of the cinnamon-colored black bear and a mama black bear and her two pups, which I saw on the same occasion a little further east.
My visit was in mid-May, and I saw 14 distinct bears in three days at various sites, but only one coyote got around the bear bottleneck.
You've undoubtedly seen and identified the ground squirrel staring at the coyote by now, but the animal is circled in the image below.
Yellowstone's winter season has recently concluded, and most park routes are closed. However, plowing is continuing, and some routes will reopen for the spring/summer season on April 19.