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Coyotes live about

years in the wild.

Read this Karok legend. Do you think the coyote

in the legend is being a trickster, a creator, or both?

The coyote plays a central role in Native American legends.

Sometimes he appears as a

trickster

– someone who plays

jokes and tricks in order to get what he needs. Sometimes

he appears as a

creator

.

here once was a time

when humans did not

have fire to keep them warm.

The only beings in the world

that knew how to make fire

were the Fire Beings.

Coyote, being the cleverest

and slyest of all the Karok,

decided to watch the Fire

Beings and learn how to

make fire.

The Fire Beings guarded the

secret of fire very carefully. But

when the Fire Beings’ watch

changed, Coyote grabbed the

fire and ran. One of the Fire

Beings chased after Coyote,

but as we all know, coyotes

are very fast. The Fire Beings

grabbed only the tip of

Coyote’s tail, burning the fur.

That is why coyotes have

black tips on their tails.

There was a terrible tussle, but

eventually Coyote threw the

fire to Wood, who swallowed

it and would not give it up to

the Fire Beings again.

Coyote knew how to get the

fire out of Wood, though – by

simply rubbing two dry sticks

together! And this, it is said, is

how the Karok people learned

how to create fire.

The Legendary Coyote

Discover some amazing coyote facts using the code at left.

Coyotes can

jump over

feet.

That’s

higher than a

basketball hoop,

which is

feet above the

ground.

A coyote litter

can have

to

pups.

Coyote Code

Read the Karok legend and number

these pictures in order based on

what you read.

Coyotes can

make

different sounds.

Coyotes can run

over

miles

per hour.

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