Okay, call it obsessive. I, however, prefer to think of it as intense curiosity. Yes, I went back out last night and collected the mystery scat. I brought it in to work this morning and have just finished dissecting the thing. Here are my findings:
1. It was mostly fur. I picked through every bit of it, looking for a clue of some sort that might suggest "whodunnit". The bits that I thought at first were wood chips turned out to be bits of dried grass and plant stems.
1. It was mostly fur. I picked through every bit of it, looking for a clue of some sort that might suggest "whodunnit". The bits that I thought at first were wood chips turned out to be bits of dried grass and plant stems.
2. I'm 95% sure the victim was a fisher. This is based on the type, and color, of fur, and the claws.
3. I'm still clueless as to whose scat it is. The diameter of most of the pieces, and their overall shape (tapered ends), suggest canid to me.
The quantity and the large bits that presented themselves on that first day suggest it might be something else.
The fact that most of the scats I've found along this stretch of trail have been bear, suggest that this might be bear, although I've never seen a bear scat with this overall shape. Most bear scats I've seen (or seen in photos) are either log-shaped (and filled with berries, apples, etc.) or puddles, like cowpies. Some photos of grizzly scats come close, but we don't have grizzlies here (should we start a rumor?).
As a former nursing assistant, I know that poking about in poo can be most informative. I can hardly wait to learn who the pooper is. Could a predator as small as a coyote kill a fisher? Even coyotes as big as ours are? Or is it possible we have a big wolf in our woods?
ReplyDeleteNo ideas about the scat, but I admire your persistance.
ReplyDeleteNice. I have poked around owl pellets but never scat. hummmm, I'm going to have to try it now. But I have never seen anything quite like your scat.
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