Nell is born into a litter of four coyotes in a den in northern Ontario. Her black fur makes her an anomaly -- and also a prime target for hunters. As they grow, she and her siblings learn how to dodge threats from other wildlife and humans. Sometimes the pups learn from their parents, other times they learn from experience, as when they gobble wild blueberries directly under the nose of a black bear. Other adventures show Nell steering clear of a trapper, escaping a wildfire, and fleeing from a deer hunter.Eventually, Nell must leave the nest. Her quest for food brings her too close to humans and she is struck by a car. Caring people in a wildlife shelter nurse her back to health and release her back into a protected wilderness park, where she will be able to find a mate and carry on with her life.