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You might enjoy this funny story from Leon Hale (Houston Chronicle).
"For the past couple of weeks I've been staying here in the old country house. During most of this period I have been matching wits with a raccoon. We are doing battle over a bird feeder.
This is a sturdy, storebought feeder, the cylindrical type. The bird seed is held in a heavy plastic tube about a foot and a half long. The tube is encased in a wire cage. The idea is that the birds hang onto the cage and stick their beaks into the feeding ports and peck up seed. I have got it hanging from the limb of a cedar tree in the back yard.
About 10 days ago I filled the feeder with sunflower seed and the next morning it was on the ground with the top off and all the seed gone.
I wondered what kind of bird dit that ?
But I filled it again, and rehung it. The feeder is suspended by a wire loop that hooks over the limb and fastens into the top of the cage.
Next morning, same thing. Feeder was down. Top was off. Seed was gone.
I have had years of combat experience with squirrels eating out of my bird feeders, but I don't think squirrels operate at night.
Sunflower seed sells for around 80 cents a pound where I buy it, and I got tired of feeding it to whatever was eating it.
So about a week ago I managed to stay awake until about 9:30 pm. I shined my flashlight out back and saw this raccoon sitting under the cedar tree, eating sunflower seed. The feeder was on the ground beside him and the lid was off.
Now that I knew who the enemy was, I was able to implement some strategy. I got a two-foot length of standard clothesline wire and I wired that feeder onto the cedar limb good and tight, with wraps and rewraps. No raccoon was going to unwrap all those turns of wire.
Next morning, the feeder was still hanging, and the lid was still on. But all the seed was gone.
This was getting mysterious. Next night I refilled the feeder and sat by a rear window with my flashlight, on stakeout.
Before 10 o'clock, here he came.
He climbed the tree. Looked at my wiring. Held on to the limb with his rear legs. Reached with his forepaws and grabbed the cage about halfway down its length. Tilted the cylinder sharply until the seed flowed from the feeding ports.
Then he went back down, to eat what he had poured out. When it was gone he climbed up and poured out more. He repeated these moves until the feeder was empty.
I had to admire that, even though this animal was into me for a good deal of sunflower seed at 80 cents a pound. For a night or two I kept seed in the feeder, just so I could see him do his stunt.
But a mistery remains. How does he get that lid off the feeder ? When he was knocking it down, I figured maybe the force of the landing was jarring it loose. But that's doubtful because that lid is threaded on. You have to give it a good half turn to screw it off.
Even when the feeder is still hanging, the raccoon has figured a way to take the lid off, so he can tilt the cylinder and get all the goodies to come out at once. Pouring it out of the feeding ports was too slow to suit him.
A raccoon has five fingers on his front paws. Five on the back ones, as well. But his front paws are mighty similar to a human hand.
Most mornings now when I go out at dawn, the feeder is hanging empty and the lid is on the ground. I haven't seen him do it but I can't think of any explanation other than this :
That sucker sits on the limb, puts forth his front legs, grabs the lid with both hands, unscrews it and drops it on the ground. I am hoping to get pictures."
"For the past couple of weeks I've been staying here in the old country house. During most of this period I have been matching wits with a raccoon. We are doing battle over a bird feeder.
This is a sturdy, storebought feeder, the cylindrical type. The bird seed is held in a heavy plastic tube about a foot and a half long. The tube is encased in a wire cage. The idea is that the birds hang onto the cage and stick their beaks into the feeding ports and peck up seed. I have got it hanging from the limb of a cedar tree in the back yard.
About 10 days ago I filled the feeder with sunflower seed and the next morning it was on the ground with the top off and all the seed gone.
I wondered what kind of bird dit that ?
But I filled it again, and rehung it. The feeder is suspended by a wire loop that hooks over the limb and fastens into the top of the cage.
Next morning, same thing. Feeder was down. Top was off. Seed was gone.
I have had years of combat experience with squirrels eating out of my bird feeders, but I don't think squirrels operate at night.
Sunflower seed sells for around 80 cents a pound where I buy it, and I got tired of feeding it to whatever was eating it.
So about a week ago I managed to stay awake until about 9:30 pm. I shined my flashlight out back and saw this raccoon sitting under the cedar tree, eating sunflower seed. The feeder was on the ground beside him and the lid was off.
Now that I knew who the enemy was, I was able to implement some strategy. I got a two-foot length of standard clothesline wire and I wired that feeder onto the cedar limb good and tight, with wraps and rewraps. No raccoon was going to unwrap all those turns of wire.
Next morning, the feeder was still hanging, and the lid was still on. But all the seed was gone.
This was getting mysterious. Next night I refilled the feeder and sat by a rear window with my flashlight, on stakeout.
Before 10 o'clock, here he came.
He climbed the tree. Looked at my wiring. Held on to the limb with his rear legs. Reached with his forepaws and grabbed the cage about halfway down its length. Tilted the cylinder sharply until the seed flowed from the feeding ports.
Then he went back down, to eat what he had poured out. When it was gone he climbed up and poured out more. He repeated these moves until the feeder was empty.
I had to admire that, even though this animal was into me for a good deal of sunflower seed at 80 cents a pound. For a night or two I kept seed in the feeder, just so I could see him do his stunt.
But a mistery remains. How does he get that lid off the feeder ? When he was knocking it down, I figured maybe the force of the landing was jarring it loose. But that's doubtful because that lid is threaded on. You have to give it a good half turn to screw it off.
Even when the feeder is still hanging, the raccoon has figured a way to take the lid off, so he can tilt the cylinder and get all the goodies to come out at once. Pouring it out of the feeding ports was too slow to suit him.
A raccoon has five fingers on his front paws. Five on the back ones, as well. But his front paws are mighty similar to a human hand.
Most mornings now when I go out at dawn, the feeder is hanging empty and the lid is on the ground. I haven't seen him do it but I can't think of any explanation other than this :
That sucker sits on the limb, puts forth his front legs, grabs the lid with both hands, unscrews it and drops it on the ground. I am hoping to get pictures."
