Taylor Josephine Stephanie Luciow, known by her stage name Taylor Mitchell (August 27, 1990October 27, 2009), was a
Canadian
Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...
country folk
Contemporary folk music refers to a wide variety of genres that emerged in the mid 20th century and afterwards which were associated with traditional folk music. Starting in the mid-20th century a new form of popular folk music evolved from tradit ...
singer and songwriter from
Toronto
Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...
. Her debut and only album, ''For Your Consideration'', received encouraging reviews and airplay. Following a busy summer performance schedule, which included an appearance as a young performer at the
Winnipeg Folk Festival
The Winnipeg Folk Festival is a nonprofit charitable organization with an annual summer folk music festival held in Birds Hill Provincial Park, near Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. The festival features a variety of artists and music from around the ...
, Taylor embarked on a tour of Eastern Canada with a newly acquired license and car.
Mitchell died at the age of 19 of injuries and blood loss after
eastern coyote
An eastern coyote in the snow near the West Virginia–Virginia state line">Virginia.html" ;"title="West Virginia–Virginia">West Virginia–Virginia state line
The eastern coyote is a wild North American canine hybrid with both coyote and wolf ...
s mauled her while she was walking in
Cape Breton Highlands National Park's
Skyline Trail. Her death is the only known fatal
coyote attack on an adult and the only known fatal coyote attack on a human ever confirmed in
Canada
Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...
. It shocked experts and led to a reassessment of the risk to humans from the predator behaviour of coyotes.
Career
Mitchell was born with the given name Taylor Josephine Stephanie Luciow. Her parents were Emily and Ray Luciow. She grew up in the
Roncesvalles
Roncesvalles ( , ; eu, Orreaga ; an, Ronzesbals ; french: Roncevaux ) is a small village and municipality in Navarre, northern Spain. It is situated on the small river Urrobi at an altitude of some in the Pyrenees, about from the French bor ...
neighbourhood of Toronto. Taylor became interested in performing by her mid teens, and after graduating from the
Etobicoke School of the Arts
The Etobicoke School of the Arts (ESA) is a specialized public arts-academic high school in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Located in Etobicoke, it has been housed in the former Royal York Collegiate Institute facility since 1983. Founded on September ...
with a major in musical theatre, decided on a career as a singer and songwriter, taking the surname "Mitchell" as her stage name. She had released a four track
EP in 2007, she independently released an album titled ''For Your Consideration'' in March 2009.
In June 2009, she was invited to perform in the
Winnipeg Folk Festival
The Winnipeg Folk Festival is a nonprofit charitable organization with an annual summer folk music festival held in Birds Hill Provincial Park, near Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. The festival features a variety of artists and music from around the ...
.
[National Geographic Channel, Attack In The Wild: Coyote Mystery (documentary)] Reaction from the roots music community and radio stations was positive, and she began working on new material. A contributor to the album,
Justin Rutledge
Justin Rutledge (born January 3, 1979) is a Toronto-based Canadian alternative country singer-songwriter signed to Outside Music.
Rutledge's musical style is often compared to that of American alt-country singer Ryan Adams. His influences, both ...
, later described Mitchell as having written beyond her years: "She didn’t provide answers, as so many of her age try to do. There was no preciousness about her. Instead she asked questions."
[Explore Magazine, February 22, 2010,]
When coyotes attack
retrieved 1/9/14 To promote the album she went on a solo concert tour of the
Maritime provinces
The Maritimes, also called the Maritime provinces, is a region of Eastern Canada consisting of three provinces: New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, and Prince Edward Island. The Maritimes had a population of 1,899,324 in 2021, which makes up 5.1% of Ca ...
, beginning on October 23, 2009. A few days before her death, Taylor was nominated for a
Canadian Folk Music Award
The Canadian Folk Music Awards are an annual music awards ceremony presenting awards in a variety of categories for achievements in both traditional and contemporary folk music, and other roots music genres, by Canadian musicians. The awards progr ...
as Young Performer of the Year.
Her last performance was in Lucasville, near Halifax; there were two days before her scheduled concert in
Sydney
Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...
.
''For Your Consideration''
Mitchell's only album, ''For Your Consideration'', was released in March 2009. Guest musicians on the album included
Justin Rutledge
Justin Rutledge (born January 3, 1979) is a Toronto-based Canadian alternative country singer-songwriter signed to Outside Music.
Rutledge's musical style is often compared to that of American alt-country singer Ryan Adams. His influences, both ...
,
Lynn Miles
Lynn may refer to:
People and fictional characters
* Lynn (given name), including a list of people and fictional characters
* Lynn (surname)
* The Lynns, a 1990s American country music duo consisting of twin sisters Peggy and Patsy Lynn
* Lynn (v ...
,
Suzie Vinnick,
John Dinsmore, and
Michael Johnston.
The album received a positive review from ''
Exclaim!
''Exclaim!'' is a Canadian music and entertainment publisher based in Toronto, which features in-depth coverage of new music across all genres with a special focus on Canadian and emerging artists. The monthly Exclaim! print magazine publishes 7 ...
'', with Eric Thom describing her as "definitively old school, if not world-weary", while ''
Now Toronto
''Now'' (styled as ''NOW''), also known as ''NOW Magazine'' is an online publication based in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Throughout most of its existence, ''Now'' was a free alternative weekly newspaper. Physical publication of ''Now'' was suspen ...
'' described it as sounding "like it comes from someone of a completely different generation".
[Thom, Eric (2009)]
Taytlor Mitchell For Your Consideration
, ''Exclaim!
''Exclaim!'' is a Canadian music and entertainment publisher based in Toronto, which features in-depth coverage of new music across all genres with a special focus on Canadian and emerging artists. The monthly Exclaim! print magazine publishes 7 ...
'', June 2009. Retrieved August 2, 2013
Track listing
# "Don't Know How I Got Here" – 4:08
# "For Your Consideration" – 3:13
# "Clarity" – 4:18
# "Ride Into the Sunset" – 4:14
# "Fun While It Lasted" – 3:41
# "
Diamonds & Rust
''Diamonds & Rust'' is the sixteenth studio album (and eighteenth overall) by American singer-songwriter Joan Baez, released in 1975. The album covered songs written or played by Bob Dylan, Stevie Wonder, The Allman Brothers, Jackson Browne and ...
" (
Joan Baez
Joan Chandos Baez (; born January 9, 1941) is an American singer, songwriter, musician, and activist. Her contemporary folk music often includes songs of protest and social justice. Baez has performed publicly for over 60 years, releasing more ...
)– 4:06
# "Trick of the Light" – 5:00
# "Secluded Roads" – 3:51
# "Shelter from the Storm" – 4:31
# "
Love and Maple Syrup" (
Gordon Lightfoot
Gordon Meredith Lightfoot Jr. (born November 17, 1938) is a Canadian singer-songwriter and guitarist who achieved international success in folk, folk-rock, and country music. He is credited with helping to define the folk-pop sound of the 1960 ...
)– 3:18
Death
Having some free time before her next concert, Mitchell, an environmentalist who enjoyed nature walks, went to Cape Breton Highlands National Park on the sunny afternoon of October 27, 2009. At 14:45, a middle-aged American couple going in the opposite direction passed her near the beginning of the
Skyline Trail in
Petit Étang. For an unknown reason, she doubled back after going a short distance along the trail and came back down the access road intending to return to her car. It is possible a coyote was stalking her at this stage.
At 15:02, an American couple named Mike and Gayle hiked on the access road heading to the car park. They moved out of the way when two coyotes were walking toward them along the road, but going in the opposite direction. One of the hikers photographed the coyotes with his camera before heading directly to the car park.
Trent University
Trent University is a public liberal arts university in Peterborough, Ontario, with a satellite campus in Oshawa, which serves the Regional Municipality of Durham. Trent is known for its Oxbridge college system and small class sizes. 's Environmental and Life Sciences graduate program professor and Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources research scientist, Brent Patterson, later commented that the two coyotes in the male hiker's photo exhibited an extraordinary lack of fear, with one displaying what verged on a dominant attitude toward humans. It is believed these coyotes walked into Mitchell on the access road six minutes later, when Mike and Gayle heard what they thought could be either animals howling or a young woman screaming in the distance. The American middle-aged couple reported these commotions in a telephone box at the car park.
Both the park's resource conservation supervisor, Erich Muntz, and the Nova Scotia Department of Natural Resource's Wildlife Resources manager, Michael O'Brien, thought Mitchell's predatory animal suspect was a
black bear
Black bear or Blackbear may refer to:
Animals
* American black bear (''Ursus americanus''), a North American bear species
* Asian black bear (''Ursus thibetanus''), an Asian bear species
Music
* Black Bear (band), a Canadian First Nations group ...
at first, but they soon found out it was a pack of
coyote
The coyote (''Canis latrans'') is a species of canis, canine native to North America. It is smaller than its close relative, the wolf, and slightly smaller than the closely related eastern wolf and red wolf. It fills much of the same ecologica ...
s. A group of four other hikers arrived in the car park, where they heard about the possible screams in the distance from the American couple. After several minutes' walk along the access road they began to find Mitchell's personal items, including keys and a small knife (believed to have been used by her in an attempt to defend herself as she was forced back up the access road and onto the Skyline Trail). As the hikers turned into the clearing at the head of the trail, they saw torn pieces of bloodied clothing and a large amount of blood along the ground. A washroom in the clearing had blood on the door.
At 15:25 they found Mitchell lying nearby among trees, with a coyote standing over her. After repeated charges by the three young men the coyote moved away from her. She was conscious and able to speak with the rescuers. The coyote remained close by, growling and unafraid until a
Royal Canadian Mounted Police
The Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP; french: Gendarmerie royale du Canada; french: GRC, label=none), commonly known in English as the Mounties (and colloquially in French as ) is the federal police, federal and national police service of ...
officer fired a shotgun at it.
Mitchell was bitten over most of her body, with particularly serious wounds to her leg and head. Paramedics took her to Sacred Heart Community Health Centre in
Chéticamp, where she was then airlifted to
Queen Elizabeth II Health Sciences Centre
Queen Elizabeth II Health Sciences Centre, in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada, is a large teaching hospital and Level 1 Trauma Centre affiliated with Dalhousie University. The QEII cares for adult patients. Pediatric patients within the region are c ...
in
critical condition
Medical state is a term used to describe a hospital patient's health status, or condition. The term is most commonly used in information given to the news media, and is rarely used as a clinical description by physicians.
Two aspects of the patien ...
. At the hospital, she died of blood loss. Her interment was at Greenwood Cemetery in
Owen Sound
Owen Sound ( 2021 Census population 21,612) is a city in Southwestern Ontario, Canada. The county seat of Grey County, it is located at the mouths of the Pottawatomi and Sydenham Rivers on an inlet of Georgian Bay.
The primary tourist attract ...
, Ontario.
Aftermath
There was speculation by wildlife experts that Mitchell might have initiated contact by trying to feed coyotes or by disturbing a den with young.
Various other proposed explanations why the unusual attack occurred included that the coyotes might have been larger and bolder than normal coyotes because they were crosses with wolves or domestic dogs, rabid, starving, or protecting a carcass.
None of these suggestions were subsequently borne out, causing a reassessment of potential risk to humans from coyote attacks. It was also thought by experts that Mitchell may have inadvertently provoked a predation behaviour by running away, though a coyote may have been behind her when she was confronted by the oncoming ones.
[Alison Auld]
Cape Breton News: Coyotes kill teen folk singer in Cape Breton park
(local comments by local readers), last updated at 12:10 AM on October 29, 2009
As is standard practice when an animal remains at large after killing a human, wardens searched for the attacker animal in the vicinity, where five or six coyotes were believed to live.
Mitchell's mother issued a statement saying that her daughter would not have wanted her death to result in the extermination of the coyotes: “We take a calculated risk when spending time in nature’s fold — it’s the wildlife’s terrain,” she wrote. “When the decision had been made to kill the pack of coyotes, I clearly heard Taylor’s voice say, ‘Please don’t, this is their space.’ She wouldn’t have wanted their demise, especially as a result of her own."
Nonetheless, hours after the incident, while the trail was closed to the public, a female coyote that acted aggressively was killed by a warden keeping watch at the washhouse location. Three others within of the Skyline trail were caught in leg-hold traps and killed before a large male weighing was similarly dispatched away on November 14. Scientific investigation of the carcasses determined that three, including the first and last accounted for, were linked to the attack on Mitchell by her blood on their coats and other forensic evidence. The large male coyote was found to have been both the dominant lead coyote photographed on the access road and the one found standing over Mitchell; coat markings in the photographs identified its carcass, which also contained pellets from the shotgun of the
Royal Canadian Mounted Police
The Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP; french: Gendarmerie royale du Canada; french: GRC, label=none), commonly known in English as the Mounties (and colloquially in French as ) is the federal police, federal and national police service of ...
constable who fired while at the scene. The dead coyotes not linked to the attack may have been packmates of the attackers.
The large male and the female may have been a breeding pair; both were related to the other attack-implicated coyote.
In mid-November 2009, a coyote came up behind a couple walking in the park approaching so closely that the man hit it on the head with a walking stick.
Park conservation managers and scientists opposed a general cull on the grounds that coyotes have the ability to reproduce quickly, and culling would be likely to have no impact, or the opposite of the desired effect. This reasoning assumes that animals removed from the local gene pool by a cull would have the same propensity to fear humans as those coyotes that avoided being caught and killed.
In April 2010,
Nova Scotia
Nova Scotia ( ; ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is one of the three Maritime provinces and one of the four Atlantic provinces. Nova Scotia is Latin for "New Scotland".
Most of the population are native Eng ...
declared a $20 bounty on coyotes, but this did not apply within the park. Visitors were asked to report encounters with coyotes. Ten months after Mitchell's death a sixteen-year-old girl who went camping with her parents at Broad Cove in
Ingonish
Ingonish is a popular tourist destination in Victoria County, Cape Breton Island, Nova Scotia, Canada. The regional economy is tied to fishing and tourism. Tourist facilities include Cape Breton Highlands National Park, the Keltic Lodge, a dow ...
was bitten twice on the head by a coyote. A scientific study found that though usually unseen, coyotes were often in proximity to humans. Individual coyotes that are not conditioned by nonlethal aversion measures and fail to avoid humans are killed.
In 2022 a study by Stan Gehrt, wildlife ecologist at Ohio State University, was released that revealed the coyotes had been living on a diet of moose rather than their typical diet of smaller animals. It was concluded that the unavailability of smaller prey led the coyotes to become accustomed to large targets leading them to see the young woman as a potential food source.
Taylor Mitchell Legacy Trust
As a memorial, Mitchell's mother established the Taylor Mitchell Legacy Trust, which has a partnership with the
David Suzuki Foundation. The trust promotes community outreach for musical/creative expression as well as educating on habitat preservation, the balance between human and wildlife interaction in both natural and urban settings, and safety precautions.
Taylor Mitchell Home
retrieved 30/8 14
See also
* Kelly Keen coyote attack
* Kenton Carnegie wolf attack
References
External links
*
Taylor Mitchell memorial and foundation
Myspace site with media
{{DEFAULTSORT:Mitchell, Taylor
1990 births
2009 deaths
21st-century Canadian women singers
Accidental deaths in Nova Scotia
Canadian child singers
Canadian women folk singers
Canadian women singer-songwriters
Canadian singer-songwriters
Deaths due to coyote attacks
Musicians from Toronto