NOVA SCOTIA, CANADA - Taylor Josephine Stephanie Luciow or known as Taylor Mitchell, a 19-year old Canadian folk singer was killed by coyotes while she was hiking alone at the Skyline Trail in Cape Breton Highlands National Park last Tuesday, October 27, 2009.
Some hikers saw the the incident and so they raised the alarm and call 911. Police arrived to find the coyotes still attacking Taylor. The Parks Canada field unit superintendent for Cape Breton Chip Bird said that Taylor suffered multiple bite wounds over her entire body. One officer shot one of the coyotes that attack Taylor but only wounded it. She was then rushed to Cheticamp and then airlifted to Queen Elizabeth II Health Sciences Centre in Halifax hospital and twelve hours later, she died.
Germaine LeMoine, public affairs officer with Parks Canada, said that the Skyline trail will remain off-limits until further notice. Authorities have shot one coyote that they believe was involved in the attack last Tuesday. The dead body of the animal was then taken to the Atlantic Veterinary College in Prince Edward Island for examination. A coyote expert at Trent University in Peterborough, Ont. named Brad White said that the coyotes that attacked Taylor might have been coywolf. A coywolf is hybrids between a coyote and the gray wolf or the red wolf. This theory has been largely disagreed by a biologist Don Anderson. Don Anderson said that there are no wolves in the area and it was supported by other biologist in Nova Scotia Department of Natural Resources. A coyote expert at Ohio State University’s school of environment and natural resources named Stan Gehrt believed that the coyotes were rabid. There were no official reports yet which confirms whether the coyotes has rabies or carry other diseases or the main cause of their unusual attack.
Taylor’s mother was totally shocked about the incident. She said that don’t actually know how to move forward but she’ll try because Taylor would want her to be happy even she’s not there anymore.
Taylor is a rising folk and country singer who was nominated for Young Performer of the Year category in the 2009 Canadian Folk Music Award (CFMA). One of the board of directors of the CFMA named Arthur McGregorsaid said that Taylor’s nomination will still stand.
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