You know Alcatraz Island? The notorious prison from which three men made a daring escape back in 1962, never to be heard from again? Well, another creature recently made history as it swam to Alcatraz: a coyote.
This is the first time anyone has ever seen this happen, and it may be the first time it ever happened.
According to Alcatraz City Cruises employee Aidan Moore, the animal was first spotted by tourists. He thought they were making stuff up until they showed him the video proof. He saw with his own eyes a coyote paddling through San Francisco Bay and scrambling onto the island’s southern shore, visibly exhausted.
WATCH: Coyote Spotted Swimming to Alcatraz Island for the First Time
Park rangers were dispatched to the scene, but the coyote vanished before anyone could find it. How and why it made the trek is anyone’s guess at this point. Moore thinks it may have fallen into the water while chasing prey, got swept away by strong currents, and then scrambled to find the nearest slice of land in a desperate act of survival.
Others think it may have been an intentional swim for reasons that we are not coyote enough to understand. Either way, it’s an incredible feat since Alcatraz is about a mile and a quarter away from San Francisco.
Speaking with SFGate, Christine Wilkinson, a carnivore ecologist who has studied Bay Area coyotes, says the animal was likely dispersing in search of new territory or a mate. Coyotes are known to swim long stretches if they think the land routes are more dangerous than usual. Highways like Interstate 280 pose a lethal risk, so swimming for over a mile might actually be safer.
All experts who spoke to SFGate who have seen the video say that the coyote appeared weak by the time it scrambled onto the shore. But coyotes are resilient. If it’s still on Alcatraz, there are plenty of rodents scurrying about that it can feed on, potentially for years if it wanted.
Only time will tell whether the coyote makes the trek back to the mainland or calls Alcatraz Island its new home.
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