I came back from a short trip to the post office today when I found one of our bird feeders unscrewed from its hook on the balcony deck and laying on the ground below. I thought I must have not tightened the screw enough and it became loose while one of our numerous Gray Squirrels had occupied the feeder. I picked it up, put it back to its place, and went on with business. Later in the afternoon Joan’s call, ‘raccoon in the tree’, made me running for the camera.
Indeed, a raccoon had climbed the elm tree that grows next to the balcony deck. It tried to hide behind the tree trunk and it became clear who the thief of bird seeds really was. Making a good click wasn’t so easy. First, I had problems finding a gap between the branches and still having some decent light available, and second, the raccoon tried to “play possum”, pretending to sleep or feigning death. The critter was hiding its face and even closed the eyes, like people sometimes do when they don’t want their picture taken. But raccoons are curious too and so I waited patiently until this guy tried to check me out again and peeked from behind the tree. Raccoons are smart animals and this one has probably unscrewed a bird feeder not for the first time to get it on the ground for an easy meal…