Relaciones humanos-coyotes en la provincia de Cartago, Costa Rica una reflexión introductoria sobre las ecologías de proximidad

Abstract

In this essay, I inquire into the human-coyote relationships in the Province of Cartago, Costa Rica. I point out that the increase in the number of coyotes sightings in urban and semi-urban spaces, since the early days of the lockdown (first semester, 2020) caused by COVID-19 pandemic. I mobilize my own fieldwork experience with the rural community of San Gerardo de Oreamuno (North zone of Cartago) to elaborate the empirical case study. I propose the concept of «ecologies of proximity» to analyze the conformation of territories of (co)existence in that community. My reflections explore situated ways in which the presence-coyote can be used to organize new stories of multi-species cohabitation. In doing so, it’s possible to reveal the emergence of modes of relationships that challenge the prevailing anthropocentric narrative of progress, development, and sustainability.