Rambling through the Lakeshore Preserve, Anne and I saw a huge shape scrambling down the trunk of a tree and through binoculars we found out what is was: a raccoon.
Procyon lotor is not a true hibernator, like a frog or a woodchuck, but more of a "winter rest" taker, meaning they sleep a lot and lower their heart rate, but their body temperatures stay up so that they may quickly snap back into hunting for food on occasion if they need a winter snack. This raccoon was 50 feet up and looked to hanging on for dear life in the strong southern winds. I couldn't see any holes large enough in this tree that it may have woken up in and staggered out to wake up from a long nap, but that is one hypothesis. Or it may have been looking for buds to eat and then decided to rest awhile. We moved along in case it felt threatened, but it was exciting to see a mammal other than a squirrel up above.
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