Name that mammal

[rolanni]

There's an animal on the deck, eating birdseed -- well, it had been eating birdseed, but we disturbed it, trying to figure out what the hotel it was, and now it's sitting in the dead tree we have strapped to the corner of the deck to make the birds happy.

At first, I thought it was a rat -- it's about that size -- then I saw the tail and thought it was a red squirrel, except it didn't make any sense for a red squirrel to be out in the pitch black depths of a blizzard. Then, we got a good look at its face and eyes -- night-seeing eyes and rounded ears -- absolutely without fear, even when kinzel opened the door and chucked a handful of snow at it.

I'm thinking it's a young fisher, but that's a guess solidly rooted in ignorance. Whatever it is, it's gonna freeze to death if it stays up in a bare, dead tree all night.

Comments

[jpsorrow.livejournal.com]

Could it be a possum?

[rolanni.livejournal.com]

Don't think so. Opossums up here have long, rat-like tails. This critter has a tail like a red squirrel -- kinda bushy, but not very long.