Native American stories are alot like other widely spread mythologies: they got mixed up.
Greek legends tended to swap out whatever god a particular polis liked for the heroes and didn't for the villains. The ones we've got are largerly the preferred recordings of Athens since they more or less won the "no we're the greeks award" by taking control of other cities.
Stories get spread around and changed in different ways. And animals that exist in different places get different traits linked to them. Coyotes are spread across the US so tribes on both coasts and in the middle have legends involving Coyote. He's a trickster and a wise man and father of creation depending on who you ask. Same with raven, beaver (who kicked fucking ass by carrying the sun around in the story I remember), sparrow, and a bunch of others.
I like the design of Coyote (I read Gunnerkigg so I picked that up during the AP) because it's similar to the artwork I'm used to seeing from the tribes in my area, Washington State.
Altering the subject for a moment to add something I liked, I really like the attitude and personality of the water spirit. The idea of it reflecting more of the nature of the sea and having a cruel streak is something I don't remembering seeing anywhere else.
