There it is, a gob of minced meat of unknown origin, just as I found it next to a pool in the Butte Creek watershed.
Fred sniffed it tentatively and left it alone.
I photographed it with an 8" crescent wrench for perspective.
Here are some other clues to help you solve the riddle.
It was 2:00 on Memorial Day, temperature in the 90s, and Fred barked several times as we climbed down the slope to the pool on the creek.
Now then, what left the gob of minced meat?
11 comments:
I hope you will tell us!
I'm going to say it was drunk humans somewhere upstream.
My guess, is that it came out of a bear's mouth -- either spit out before it was swallowed or brought up shortly after it was swallowed. Might have been a coyote that left it, but more likely a bear.
Pet dog that grabbed some picnic meat? You'd think a hungry critter wouldn't run off and leave it behind. Assuming that's meat and not a gut pile.
I think the real mystery is why in the heck does the Codger carry an 8" crescent wrench on his hikes?
I'll have to go with a "goblin" based on available info but I didn't know they packed wrenches.
Fred's barking suggests the presence of a predator, but maybe not a real big one, or everything would have been gulped down. Coyote? Fox?
Folks, my best guess is that it was a turkey vulture, which are known to upchuck and poop when alarmed and in a vulnerable situation, like naked in the bathtub. I've videod vultures and other raptors at this pool in hot weather, so it seems possible the bird's ablutions were rudely interrupted by Fred's barking. Of course I can't prove it; so those of you who thought it was regurgitated meat were correct. Carrying the wrench is just one of my quirks.
Vulture, OK.
And yes, there are a lot of loose nuts in the woods, but can a wrench fix them?
Looks like somebody cleaned a fish to me. I am a little surprised that you are carrying a wrench around.
I always feel safer with a wrench -- you never know when you have to remove a nut.
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