Last night at Around 4:30 AM my husband woke up thinking he heard something on the deck just outside of our bedroom. But it didn't sound too threatening so he promptly went back to sleep. I slept through whatever it was, but when I got up at around 7 AM was surprised to find that we had had a visitor during the night.
Three of my birdfeeders were down on the ground and the metal poles they were hanging from were bent very close to the ground. The trash can we put out last evening for collection today was dumped over but because we put all of our kitchen scraps in our compost bin, the garbage apparently didn't smell very interesting so wasn't scattered. The rain gauge that sits on the deck outside our bedroom window had been disturbed but was also not terribly interesting to the neighborhood marauder. A few of the other neighbors had their trash dumped and scattered.
This was no racoon or opposum ... not a deer or flying squirrel ... not even a skunk or fox could do this kind of damage and in the newly mulched garden we could tell the beast had big feet. So more than likely it was one of our hungry black bear friends who come through the area from time to time. If they find lots of good eating they'll often hang around returning night after night trying to keep their stomachs full. Several years ago in a nearby community several cars were wrecked by bears who were trying to get at trash or food the owners had left in their cars overnight. One person had to put up an electric fence around her car because the bear kept trying to get into the car even after the edibles had been removed.
So I've taken my bird feeders down and we'll probably keep the trash can in the garage for a while. Interesting is the fact that the culprit didn't find the compost bin. The birds looked quite confused this morning and by afternoon had moved on to find handouts somewhere else. I missed seeing them just outside my kitchen window, but for now we've got to keep the bear away by not putting out offerings he or she might be interested in. The birds will be safer this way too, as Lily our bird hunting cat will not be able to stalk them from under the feeders. There are plenty of spring foods out there for the birds now and I saw another butterfly today!!
Three of my birdfeeders were down on the ground and the metal poles they were hanging from were bent very close to the ground. The trash can we put out last evening for collection today was dumped over but because we put all of our kitchen scraps in our compost bin, the garbage apparently didn't smell very interesting so wasn't scattered. The rain gauge that sits on the deck outside our bedroom window had been disturbed but was also not terribly interesting to the neighborhood marauder. A few of the other neighbors had their trash dumped and scattered.
This was no racoon or opposum ... not a deer or flying squirrel ... not even a skunk or fox could do this kind of damage and in the newly mulched garden we could tell the beast had big feet. So more than likely it was one of our hungry black bear friends who come through the area from time to time. If they find lots of good eating they'll often hang around returning night after night trying to keep their stomachs full. Several years ago in a nearby community several cars were wrecked by bears who were trying to get at trash or food the owners had left in their cars overnight. One person had to put up an electric fence around her car because the bear kept trying to get into the car even after the edibles had been removed.
So I've taken my bird feeders down and we'll probably keep the trash can in the garage for a while. Interesting is the fact that the culprit didn't find the compost bin. The birds looked quite confused this morning and by afternoon had moved on to find handouts somewhere else. I missed seeing them just outside my kitchen window, but for now we've got to keep the bear away by not putting out offerings he or she might be interested in. The birds will be safer this way too, as Lily our bird hunting cat will not be able to stalk them from under the feeders. There are plenty of spring foods out there for the birds now and I saw another butterfly today!!
5 comments:
Bears so early?! We get them in late summer, when the berries in the mountains are gone and they need to fatten up for winter. Quite a problem in some neighbourhoods. Interesting how they keep coming back to where they found food previously, so there's quite an education campaign here to keep garbage locked up in garages until morning pickup, under threat of fines even.
For as long as I lived out in the country I never saw or heard a bear. Mountain lions, foxes, deer, raccoons - yes, but I'm glad to say no bears.
It's probably a good thing your husband went back to sleep. That might have been a rude wake up.
I can just imagine that bear reaching up and bending your bird feeder! It always amazes me people in North America live in close proximity to bears.
The birds are supposed to be better off now with natural, high protein food anyway, aren't they?
sounds like a bear to me - we've got one here too - all over yosemite there are bear-proof containers, but none here at the lake - they have it down pat as to how to raise the dumpster lid, and get inside! today i had to laugh when i saw that someone had posted one of those yellow signs saying, "bear crossing" near the dumpster!
It does seem a bit early for bears, but what do I know - I live in a city. Hope all the other animals are safe from the marauding bear! xo
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