It was 9 a m Thursday morning and there was a raccoon on the patio. Never happens – they are nocturnal, and I will very rarely see one at dawn or dusk. I had thrown out the remains of a bag of tortilla chips, and s/he was chowing down. The squirrels had vacated the place.
Suddenly down the path from the woods comes another raccoon – decidedly bigger. Raccoon the First went onto the path toward the newcomer, not waiting to be confronted. S/he lowered his/her body to the ground and looked up at Raccoon the Second, then rose and did considerable sniffing.
Raccoon the Second went on to the pile of chips and proceeded to munch. After skirting the edge of the patio, First went to the far edge of the pile and resumed eating, moving away after about 5 minutes of additional chips. The Second took his/her time, finished off breakfast and wandered away.
Interesting to see how they handled what might have become a skirmish. A good solution, I thought. Especially since neither looked like a long winter’s sleep had depeleted them in any way. But what were they doing out of bed at that hour in the first place?