This spring I started summer-feeding birds despite the plain and simple fact that putting out birdseed or suet is like inviting every animal in the forest to a free Old Country Buffet.
I did it anyway. At winter’s end, after taking down the suet cage and not filling feeders or scattering sunflower seeds, I was lonesome for the cute little woodpecker that always came at dusk. I missed the cheerful chickadees that visited in late afternoon, the feisty brazenness of nuthatches. What harm would it do to set out a few peanuts on the deck railing?
I set out a handful. Soon two handfuls. By June first, I was feeding a menagerie. I quit shooing away the red squirrel and even thought it was cute when the resident chipmunk whisked around the corner as I stepped out the kitchen door.
A raven frequently landed on the railing to scoop up the bread chunks I left for it. Leftovers were always eaten by something at night. I didn’t know what.
With my little animal kingdom intact, I didn’t even think about predators. After all, I was only tossing out bread and peanuts.
One morning while walking past the kitchen door, I stopped in my tracks and stared out the window at a strange animal standing on the railing chomping down peanuts like there was no tomorrow. It looked very much at ease. Oh yes, it had been here before.
It was unaware of my presence so I got a good look. It was a foot and a half long with darkish brown fur, a curved back, and a long tail. But its head was what caught my attention: triangle-shaped with a pointy nose, slanted eyes. Although I couldn’t see its teeth, the rate at which it chewed and devoured the peanuts made it obvious they were razor sharp. This animal did not look like something I wanted hanging around my house.
The creature stayed long enough to finish all the goodies and then, using my deck railing as its private transportation route, scampered away. When I asked Dick if he knew what the mystery critter was, he immediately said, “A fisher.” A Google search offered the following information. “ Fishers eat snowshoe hares, rabbits, rodents and birds, and are one of the few specialized predators of porcupines.”
Porcupines? This animal could tear my pug apart in minutes and give my big dog quite a fight. Sadly I understood what I had to do.
I stopped setting out my summer picnics for wild creatures. Believing I’d taken care of the problem, I was surprised a few days later when Dick pointed to the front deck railing. “There goes your fisher.”
Sure enough, the fisher was scooting along the deck railing, looking for a snack. Apparently this critter isn’t easily discouraged. Although I hope my story has ended, I’m not certain it has.
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