Essay on man & animal

Close Encounters Leave Memories, Affirm Connection With Nature.
by John R. Evanetski

Those close encounters of a spontaneous kind with Nature and its creatures form satisfying and lasting memories, lift the spirit, and affirm a connection between man and animal. Coming unexpectedly upon wildlife and their life in the wild is an intimate experience.

Rounding a turn on a forest trail and meeting a fawn deer eye-to-eye is an exercise in mutual trust. Many yearling deer have had no contact with man; likewise for many hikers, hunters and other outdoor enthusiasts. So, that first sighting for both man and animal is a time of curious wonder requiring an unspoken assurance from both that this meeting is without malicious intent. The parting is done with a sense of respect and acknowledgement that man and animal can co-exist without threat or worry, if they choose.

Spotting ‘possum feeding on the leaves of a sapling tree under the lush green canopy of an Eastern hardwood forest is a study in eating efficiency. Slowly they turn, leaf by leaf , meticulously examining each specimen with near clinical precision. Slowly they dine, taking small bites, chewing, re-examining, chewing, re-examining. Meal ends, slowly they descend, one hand-hold at a time, calmly sliding through the groundcover, unfettered in their conquest.

Listening to coyotes call to each other as they run almost reckless along the rocky ridge tops of the Western mountains, or observing a Bull Elk unabashedly splash through an alpine meadow while bellowing his distinctive bugle, is a study of contrasts.

At times the coyote sounds what seems a lonesome cry, a hungry howl, waling the woes of a solitary existence. At other times, this wild dog sings with joy for the camaraderie of life with the pack, content with being himself, wild and free.

The massive bull elk is a family man. Enjoying as much the social companionship of the female as obedience to the instinctive drive for continuance that is bourn from the need, and hugh desire, to procreate the species. But it is the breathe and scope of his size that belies the near-hollow whistle of the bull’s bugled note.

For the human, it’s a matter of awareness, that of being attuned to the sounds of nature, widening the eye to catch that faint shadow, flaring the nostrils for a telltale scent, which reveals the wonders of the woods and its inhabitants.