Raccoons | wordsfromanneli

December 18, 2022
by wordsfromanneli 50 Comments

The Most Popular Elusive Guy

I think I see him. I hope he’s got my bag of grubs.

Yes, you’re right! And I see the big sack full of hazelnuts for me.

Er, ah, HERE I AM, Santa. OVER HERE!

Where? I don’t see anything.

When he does come, I hope he brings me a lot of rosehips. Wonder what they’d taste like. In the winter I get tired of these holly berries and mountain ash berries. But maybe the rosehips are too fuzzy inside. They look good though.

Oooooh! Look! He’s got sleigh troubles. His reindeer are conking out. Should’ve got a Tesla Sleigh. With inflation, the price of reindeer food today is high, even for Santa. But even so, the cost of the Tesla Sleigh itself is enough to break the bank.

Yeah, he’s in trouble all right. Look! He’s turning around. Sniff… there goes that box of dog biscuits I asked for.

I see that. Hmm … I think I hear them complaining about being hitched up so close. Something about social distancing.

Sigh! No herring for supper tonight. Not by special delivery, anyway.

Well, I never! He’s going back to the North Pole. There goes that bunch of tree bugs I asked for.

I’ll go round up some recr-hoots.

Hey, you. Santa’s looking to hire you, Al and the Paca, to be his reindeer substitutes.

What’s that you say? You don’t play second fiddle? Huh! You’d think that in the spirit of Christmas, you’d oblige an old man. I see you are related to those llamas next door with all their llammering. You’re just lazy, the All Packa ya. Well, see if I give a hoot.

Here’s a likely crew.

Say, would you pronghorns like to save Santa’s bacon tonight?

But we’re in Montana.

That’s okay. He’ll have to go by there when he limps home with his rainydeer crew and drops them off. Maybe you can hop on and help get them home before the nightshift begins. Thanks a lot.

I’ve been watching and I don’t see him coming back yet. Must be in the workshop, adjusting the harnesses to the new team.

I think I see him now, with his fresh crew of pronghorns. Funny-looking reindeer. Better than nothing, I guess.

Oh, this is so exciting. We just can’t sit still.

Children, children, not so loud,

Reindeer’s nervous of the crowd,

Send a delegation out,

Find that sleigh, and kids don’t pout.

Let’s go meet him.

This way! This way!

Santa’s big sleigh.

Sliding, gliding,

Santa’s riding.

Now settle down or Santa will think you’re all quackers.

Look how well behaved we are; black and white, eating at the same table together. One big happy flock. We’re a “blended flock.”

Oh, listen to you guys. You think it’s easy being the black swan of the family?

Whaddaya mean? You think you’ve got it bad? You try being a rat. All I did was chew on a few of those lovely black licorice cords in the truck and WHAM! They lifted the trunk and exposed me to the elements. But they won’t see me hiding in the corner. Bet you can’t see me either. I’ve got a really good hiding place in the door well too. I’ll just wait there until Santa brings new wiring for me to nibble on.

One thing we all got for Christmas – not sure if Santa had anything to do with it – was darn cold weather. So when Santa had to fly back to change his Rainydeer tires for the more heavy-duty Pronghorn brand, he asked the North Wind to provide some Puddle Puzzles for us to play with while we await his return.

Actually, I thought the puzzles were more like A-maze-ing. You just try it. See if you can find a path out of this maze.

I hope your Christmas holiday time is amazing too.

Did you find the rat in the truck? Look on the far back right-hand corner of the picture (actually the left side of the truck).

October 11, 2022
by wordsfromanneli 34 Comments

Nut Job

If I’m not already a nut job, then after doing this nut job, I will be one.

I had thought there were no hazelnuts on the trees this year but I was wrong. They were a bit late to develop, but they were quite prolific. When I saw that the raccoons and the squirrels were harvesting them, day (squirrels) and night (raccoons), I thought I’d better get in on the action. Looks like a little black cocker is also wanting to get in on the action.

I let the nuts sit out in the sun to dry out for a couple of weeks, and then, as the nights grew cooler I had to do something with the nuts or watch them go moldy. It’s not cold enough to make a fire in the woodstove so hanging the nuts in burlap bags by the fire was not an option.

I decided to crack them and put the nutmeat in ziplocs and freeze them. This way I can take out what I need to use for baking through the winter.

I tried them out in a batch of banana/blueberry/hazelnut muffins. Turned out quite good.

August 9, 2022
by wordsfromanneli 39 Comments

Raccoon Invasion

It was quite dark when I took these pictures and then I tried to crop and lighten them somewhat so you could see the invasion of masked terrorists entering illegally.

They will take whatever they want: beetles, garden plants, and anything left over in bird feeders, or sunflower seeds that the squirrels missed.

Last week there were first four and then five raccoons. Now there are six! We are overrun with them. Will it ever end?

Carping and barking, we all go a-larking,

When daylight has faded enough.

Leaping and creeping, while folks are a-sleeping,

Avoiding a doggie’s rebuff.

Scratching the hatching of June bugs we’re catching,

We crunch up the meaty delight,

Smacking and snacking, no flavour is lacking,

We chew every delicate bite.

Clicking and picking, the camera’s tricking

Our groupings to catch us at work,

Crashing and dashing we run from its flashing

Our family scatters berserk.

Mewling and fooling around can be grueling,

But masks will keep hidden our face.

Scowling and growling, we carry on prowling,

And hurry to find the next place.

August 6, 2022
by wordsfromanneli 40 Comments

Nightly Visitors

The sun has just dropped below the hills. The first bats of the evening flit spastically through the air, looking for those giant beetles that helicopter around on hot nights. Once the bats go to work, the raccoons know it’s dark enough.

One muted sharp chirping bark calls the team together.

It’s time to go to work.

They creep through the hedge, sniff the air, and advance towards the safety of the island of trees.

“Now, Ralphie! Stick close to Mama,” says Rebecca. “And keep that mask on. There’s still Covid around, and even if masks don’t work, it’s better than nothing.”

Rhonda’s family comes out too, gathering around for a quick meeting to discuss the best route for foraging through the yard. Richie, Ronnie, and Rachel mill around waiting for someone to make the first move. “But what’s the bright light?”

“Don’t worry. It’s too dark for anyone to see us now. That’s only some would-be photographer. Just hide behind your mask.”

The group scratches and paws at the ground. Some of them find the ten-lined June beetles that foolishly think they are safe to fly around at night, landing on anything and everything.
But any that land near a raccoon, on the ground or in the trees become just another hors d’oeuvre. Chomp! Chomp! Another one down the hatch.

“But where are we going? Are we going to check out the squirrels’ sunflower seed leftovers first? How do we get through the gate? ”

“Oh, come on then. I’ll show you the way. Never mind those squirrels in the woodshed.”

With a snort, Rebecca motors through the space in the fence, and all four of them follow her on the next stage of their nightly trek.

Once the raccoons started to run for cover it was hard to follow them with the camera, so apologies for the scrambled ending of the video below, but I did spy a small set of eyes hiding behind the tree.

June 17, 2022
by wordsfromanneli 29 Comments

Randolph Raccoon Roots Around

The Captain and I were having an afternoon coffee on our deck when Randolph came to visit. He’d been lurking around the yard late at night and usually disappeared in the wee hours of the morning. But lately he is getting braver about being seen in the glaring daylight hours.

He wasn’t too concerned about anything – even took time to scratch an itch.

He came right out in the open, looking for dandelions in the grass, and this explains his more frequent visits. Our grass is loaded in weeds. Definitely not a Scott’s Turfbuilder lawn. I don’t really mind him digging out the weeds to get at the roots or bugs, but I wish he would refill the holes.

Until now I had been blaming Bonnie and Benny Bunny for all the holes dug in our “lawn,” and they do their fair share of digging, but I saw Randolph in action this day, and knew I had to allow the bunnies some leniency. They are probably only guilty of digging a third of the holes in the yard.

March 18, 2022
by wordsfromanneli 31 Comments

Introduced Species

The balance of nature has been out of kilter for hundreds of years – basically, since man has interfered to make things better. In many cases, some species have been introduced to an area where they are not indigenous to solve a problem “naturally,” without resorting to pesticides or culling of another species.

An example is the cane toad in Australia. It was brought into the country to deal with the cane beetle in the sugar cane fields. Unfortunately the cane toad is now the bigger problem.

Rabbits, too, were introduced there, and have multiplied as only rabbits can, making their population unmanageable.

The green crab has been transported in ships’ ballasts and has upset the marine ecosystems wherever it has established itself.

Zebra mussels are also an invasive species transported by ships.

Feral swine (also called wild pigs, Eurasian boar, or feral hogs) destroy agricultural fields and impact the regeneration of forests by eating the seeds, nuts, and cones of trees. The swine are omnivorous and so are a threat to young livestock. They can do tremendous damage to the agricultural industry. Feral swine carry at least 30 types of diseases and 40 types of parasites. They are really bad news!

Burmese pythons have been introduced to Florida’s Everglades through the pet trade and have upset the balance of nature there. They prey on rabbits, foxes, raccoons, and birds, to name a few. Many populations of smaller mammals have been decimated. The Burmese python has also brought a pentastome parasitic disease, infecting other reptiles. The parasite is now considered to be endemic in Florida.

So you see that introduced species can be quite detrimental to their new habitat.

While trout fishing on a local lake recently, the Captain encountered a new invasive species, the freshwater crocodile. It is pictured here, photo taken with the Captain’s little point-and-click Fuji camera. It is a bit blurry because he was shaking with fear, and paddling with one hand while he risked his life to take the photo with the other.

If you ever find yourself tempted to swim in a freshwater lake in British Columbia, be aware that these newly introduced crocodiles could appear from the depths to nibble on their favourite delicacy, swimmers’ toes.

February 25, 2022
by wordsfromanneli 46 Comments

The Messy Eater

Hmm, that looks like something tasty. Think I’ll fly on down for a bite of lunch.

Good thing I spotted this raccoon carcass. Tastes not bad.

Oh, darn. I got a spot of blood on my shirt.

Hmpf! I just know the Missus will be annoyed. Oh well, it was worth it.

November 25, 2021
by wordsfromanneli 40 Comments

Night Visitor

Reggie Raccoon came to visit last night. Emma dog was surprised when she went out for last call. Luckily for her, Reggie was a fast climber. I don’t think Emma would have come away unscathed from an interaction with Reggie.

Reggie likes to prowl at night,

Finds it safer without light,

Still he gets caught by surprise,

Up the tree he’s quick to rise.

Little dogs might seem so cute,

But it brings out Reggie Brute,

He can be so fiercely mean,

After all the fights he’s seen.

Up the tree’s the safest thing,

Better than the fighting ring,

Reggie needs to watch his back,

Just in case the dogs attack.

Waiting in the branch’s crook,

Fearful moments while he shook,

Seem a lifetime till it’s clear,

And he can release his fear.

All he wanted was to check,

If the squirrels had left a speck,

They are given so much food,

Thought they’d share if in the mood.

Nothing left though, that was clear,

And when coupled with the fear,

Reggie wonders why he came,

He must find some other game.

In the meantime he will smile,

For the camera all the while,

Long as he can look so sweet,

He can hope they’ll leave a treat.

Meanwhile Emma’s found a spot,

Where she can relax a lot,

Reggie doesn’t want to play,

Maybe try another day.

By the way, Emma says, Don’t forget to look at Anneli’s bargains for her books at https://wordsfromanneli.com/2021/11/21/book-bargains/

September 1, 2021
by wordsfromanneli 36 Comments

All Masked Up

First it was the dog, growling and barking at me, and now it’s that woman waving her camera around like she’s a journalist and I’m the star of her freak show. I can see the headlines now: Masked Bandit Hides in Tree

Only one thing to do, and that’s go higher and stay put. The woman doesn’t look like she’s much of a climber – not at her age.

Emma, her dog, can jump a few feet, but of course, she can’t climb.

Well … let’s see … what’s the best way to get up here?

I’ll just have a stretch before I climb any higher. Get limbered up before I go up the limbs.

Ouch! I forgot about my owie. Think I scraped it the other night going up a tree in a hurry. Couldn’t really see where I was going and I gave myself a sore arm on one of those broken branches.

Now, where was I? Oh yeah, check out Mrs. Journalist. Yup, she’s still standing there pointing that black thing my way. Well, at least she can’t identify me with my mask on, so I can cause any kind of mischief I want. But I am complying with all the Covid rules – I have my mask on … which is silly, because we’re outdoors in the fresh air.

When will she stop pointing that camera at me?

Sorry, but I’m a bit camera shy.

She’s a brazen one! Still there. Still pointing that gadget at me. Good thing I have a mask on for anonymity as well as for Covid. But still, still, still….

I’d better stay hidden behind the tree. I’ll just peek out now and then to see if she’s gone yet, and to make sure that dog isn’t around.

Reggie Raccoon felt quite brave around noon,

He just couldn’t wait until dark.

Running so hard across Anneli’s yard,

He leaped up the nearest tree’s bark.

Rushing he scrambled, his fate he had gambled,

He came close to losing his tail,

Emma, the jumper, leaped up to his bumper,

It’s lucky her snap was a fail.

July 24, 2021
by wordsfromanneli 47 Comments

Reggie Raccoon

Apologies for the fuzzy photo. In the middle of the night, I took this picture in a big hurry through the dining room window while the Captain shone a flashlight at this guy from the deck. Seconds later the bandit was gone.