I have, and while it occurred more than 25 years ago, I can still visualize the sighting as if it were yesterday.

Fresh snow had fallen the night before, and I was hiking a logging road in the deep woods of Lycoming County. The newly fallen snow was ideal for picking out and following any tracks of whatever game I passed through on my travels. It was mid-morning, with a brisk temperature just below freezing as the sun began to break through the otherwise overcast sky. Most of what I had been seeing was deer tracks, and twice, I saw where three gobblers had crossed the roadway from left to right and later back to the left as they scoured the area for any remaining acorns or beech nuts.

But then, coming from the woods on the left side was a set of tracks that, upon close examination, I identified as that of a coyote. The tracks now continued on the roadway ahead of me, and within 50 yards, three more sets of coyotes joined with what I thought had been a lone animal. The four sets of tracks were very fresh, and I began to focus my attention on the distance ahead in hopes that I might spot the animals. The road continued on a relatively straight path for another 200 yards, and the tracks stayed centered on the roadway. Then, the logging road jogged 90 degrees to the right, and as I reached the turn, I spotted all four coyotes 150 yards away, standing in the middle of the road. Their attention was off to the side of the road and ahead of where they stood as they scanned the nearby woods and an open field for any possible meals they could encounter.

Three of the animals were the usual light brownish-gray coloration, but the one was stunning! It was a black color phase! In all of my travels and encounters with coyotes, I had never come across a black coyote before and had not seen another one since that day. It was not a shiny jet-black like a black bear but more of a blackish charcoal in color, and it was a striking sight as it stood among the three other coyotes. Suddenly, they all raced off into the woods, either seeing a possible meal or perhaps catching my scent.

There is not a great deal of information about the black color phase of coyotes in Pennsylvania, no doubt because there are so few, and sightings or encounters are very rare in our state. There are a half-dozen or so photos and trail camera pictures of black color phase coyotes across Pennsylvania that can be found on YouTube that occurred between 2011 and 2023. The Pennsylvania Game Commission website states that the color phase of the coyotes in our state ranges from light blond to reddish blond to gray and from dark brown washed with black to black. There was no indication as to the percentage of our coyotes that are in the black color phase. There is an 11-second video on YouTube from September 10, 2022, showing a black coyote running through an open field somewhere in the Pennsylvania countryside.

Research has been compiled that reveals there are more numerous black coyotes in Alabama, Georgia, and North and South Carolina. Over 30 years, data collected from 460 coyotes from these four states showed that 5.7% of all coyotes captured were black. There is an amazing video on YouTube capturing footage of an entire pack of black coyotes that was posted on the Kentucky Wildlife Trail Cam Videos YouTube Page, showing the group of at least six melanistic coyotes walking down a wooded trail.

So, how does this rare black color phase occur? An animal can be darker or lighter depending on how much of a pigment called “melanin” it has. A predominance of melanin in animals will yield the black color as seen in coyotes and other animals. Yes, on very rare occurrences, it can be found in whitetail deer!

Seeing a coyote in the wild with this melanistic black color phase is a rare treat indeed, and if you have done so, you can count yourself among the lucky few. If you have not, these next couple of months, while snow is on the ground, is a prime time to try to spot one as coyotes are on the move searching for their next meal.