Eric Gofreed
Well-Known Member
Feeding the birds has its perks: beautiful photos, joyful noise, and the occasional feeling that you're running a feathered soup kitchen. It also attracts chipmunks, squirrels, and—every now and then—a Cooper’s Hawk with bad intentions and faster reflexes than I’d prefer.
And sometimes... it brings a bobcat.
This particular bobcat was playing a slow-motion game of hide-and-seek with a Harris’s ground squirrel in a patch of prickly cactus. Watching the two of them maneuver through the spines reminded me of Br’er Rabbit in the briar patch—minus the Southern accent and the G rating. I had no chance of getting a clean shot through the cactus, but as the bobcat walked away, I yelled, “Hey, buddy! Spare me a portrait!” followed by some kissy sounds that I hoped were dignified. He turned and gave me a look, like I was something not worth eating, chasing, or even mildly inconveniencing. Then, with the theatrical patience of a creature who knows it’s in charge, he let me take one photo before disappearing into the brush.
Couplet
He slinks through the cactus without leaving a track,
Then turns like a model when I yell at his back.
And sometimes... it brings a bobcat.
This particular bobcat was playing a slow-motion game of hide-and-seek with a Harris’s ground squirrel in a patch of prickly cactus. Watching the two of them maneuver through the spines reminded me of Br’er Rabbit in the briar patch—minus the Southern accent and the G rating. I had no chance of getting a clean shot through the cactus, but as the bobcat walked away, I yelled, “Hey, buddy! Spare me a portrait!” followed by some kissy sounds that I hoped were dignified. He turned and gave me a look, like I was something not worth eating, chasing, or even mildly inconveniencing. Then, with the theatrical patience of a creature who knows it’s in charge, he let me take one photo before disappearing into the brush.
Couplet
He slinks through the cactus without leaving a track,
Then turns like a model when I yell at his back.
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