Perloined Plexiglass

I like to feed the birds in our backyard. I've got a feeder hanging from the back fence. I fill the feeder every Monday afternoon. The birds, sloppy and ravenous, usually empty it out in less than 24 hours. Often in less than 12.

I went out there today and opened the feeder to fill it and I was surprised to find one of the two Plexiglas sides completely missing. I looked around on the ground and looked over the fence to see if it was there. I couldn't see it anywhere and I was sure that some neighborhood kids stole it.

At the urging of the Wife I went back behind the fence to do a more thorough search. Our back fence backs up against a road and there is a pretty good drop from the bottom of our fence and the road - eight to twelve feet I would guess. When I got there sure enough the piece of Plexiglas was at the bottom of the ditch.

I picked it up and, using the skills I learned watching CSI, I identified the perpetrator:

A Raccoon

The amount of wildlife around these parts never ceases to amaze me. The biggest thing we saw in our backyard in Oxnard was a possum. Now I just need to catch the raccoon in the act with my camera.