Guest TooRisky Posted June 10, 2011 Share Posted June 10, 2011 All of my research has pointed to the fruit staying on the tree thru the winter. I have links at home , but was unable to post from there on my dinner break. I don't think Racoons leave scat as big as a large human. You can see for yourself the size in relation to the Coke can. I've lived here all of my life and we've never had a bear reported. All I can conclude is either BF or human. This is in North East Kansas Risky I was thinking the same about Coons, but I have seen some monsters in my life also... As for the LA. mistake, my bad, I have no clue where that came from, lol but was sure it was right till pointed out...lol I cant see a human eating that many berries and not chewing a lot of them either, I love blueberries and they look about the same size and would never not think to completely chew them... Or to make a whole meal of them... It really looks to me like the first feeding of a bear when coming out of hibernation, moving out all of last years scat... Also berries are full of sugars, easily digested, and are easy on the gut as it restarts digestion... But no Bears as you state, so back to square one... Thanks for putting this up... I love a good mystery Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest CaptainMorgan Posted June 10, 2011 Share Posted June 10, 2011 Bittermonk, that would be my first best guess, but I'm just not willing to surf the net looking for feral hog scat that contains hackberries, do you have a reference? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest TooRisky Posted June 10, 2011 Share Posted June 10, 2011 IMHO you presume too soon. That looks a lot like feral hog scat. Kentucky does have feral hogs, and the range from the East to the West... They do get to a good size and would eat berries if they could reach them... Problem is that hogs eat so many different things and their diet is all encompassing that just a meal of these berries off the tree just does not make sense... Also feral hogs are sociable and tend to be easily identified by the damage they leave around them... But should be considered as a possible explanation Quote from the following PDF at http://www.dnrintra.state.il.us/ORC/Wildlife/ReportsW/General/FeralHogs.pdf Feral hogs will eat anything they can find, including deer fawns, and can grow to 450-500 pounds. They are most active at night but can sometimes be found during the day loafing in clear-cuts and brushy areas. They require abundant water and spend considerable time near seeps, ponds, and streams. Sows and pigs often travel in groups called “soundersâ€. After wallowing, they rub on nearby trees, leaving mud and hair on the bark. Their scat differs from that of deer and is variable, but can contain acorns, grain, or the hair/scales/feathers of what they have eaten. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest BitterMonk Posted June 10, 2011 Share Posted June 10, 2011 Problem is that hogs eat so many different things and their diet is all encompassing that just a meal of these berries off the tree just does not make sense... I would beg to differ. I once found a pile of black bear scat that was near 100% holly berries. Just because it says omnivorous doesn't mean every meal is a balanced one. I have no problem seeing any animal pigging out on an easy to access or desirable food source. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
indiefoot Posted June 10, 2011 Author Share Posted June 10, 2011 Hackberries remain on the tree thru spring.Feral hogs don't have step ladders. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest BitterMonk Posted June 10, 2011 Share Posted June 10, 2011 Again I think you presume too soon. You've never seen a fruit tree blown over? Uprooted? A brief search turned up information that these trees are prone to losing limbs and that they shouldn't be planted near high traffic areas since the fruit can stain sidewalks. If you want to convince yourself of an outcome that's fine but don't limit the rest of us. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest BitterMonk Posted June 10, 2011 Share Posted June 10, 2011 Hackberries remain on the tree thru spring. According to your own state's Forest Service the fruit stays on the tree "most of the winter". That's not the same as through spring, and considering your find was in mid-February I'd argue it was well within the time frame that one might expect to find it on the ground. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest TooRisky Posted June 10, 2011 Share Posted June 10, 2011 I would beg to differ. I once found a pile of black bear scat that was near 100% holly berries. Just because it says omnivorous doesn't mean every meal is a balanced one. I have no problem seeing any animal pigging out on an easy to access or desirable food source. Omnivore was used in the shape and taper of the scat... Meaning we can weed out many many woodland creatures... Also Bears are omnivores... There is also the many times that it has been mentioned that there are no bears in his area and have not been there for about 200 years... http://www.qrg.northwestern.edu/projects/marssim/simhtml/info/whats-an-omnivore.html An omnivore is a kind of animal that eats either other animals or plants. Some omnivores will hunt and eat their food, like carnivores, eating herbivores and other omnivores. Some others are scavengers and will eat dead matter. Many will eat eggs from other animals. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest BitterMonk Posted June 10, 2011 Share Posted June 10, 2011 I'm not saying this is bear scat. I was using my example of the bear to show that even an animal that eats a wide variety of things can produce a scat that is to the contrary. The feral hog is no different. If you eat Mexican food does the end result look the same as if you eat salad? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest bsruther Posted June 10, 2011 Share Posted June 10, 2011 That's some big feces you have there. Coyote droppings are the biggest we have around here and theirs don't come close to that. Unless there are wild pigs in that area, I can't imagine what it could be. It seems odd that most of the berries appear to be whole and unchewed. Reminds me of what happens when I eat a couple ears of corn. I have quite a few Hackberry trees. Their warty bark and leaves that resemble Elm, make them easy to identify. I've never seen the berries on them though, which makes me think that they're very popular with the birds and whatever else may be able to get at them. Mullberry trees drop their fruit, but I never see those on the ground. I have a Paw-paw patch and rarely see the fruit from those either. I'm pretty sure the Raccoons feast on those. I guess my point is that fruit that grows in the woods/forest, is usually eaten as soon as it's ripe, by whatever eats it and rarely has a chance to hit the ground. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
indiefoot Posted June 10, 2011 Author Share Posted June 10, 2011 If you look carefully at the photos, you can see there are no twigs, no leaves, no litter of any sort that you would expect with most animals. Whatever left the scat ate only berries. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
indiefoot Posted June 10, 2011 Author Share Posted June 10, 2011 This is from www.na.fs.fed.us The cherrylike fruits often hang on the trees throughout the winter providing many birds with food. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest PastorTim Posted June 10, 2011 Share Posted June 10, 2011 I think it is premature to rule out bear just because a few of you claim no bear have been there for 200 years or are 200 miles away. A bear's range can be up to 100 miles without a problem following a food source. I don't think it is totally unreasonable to consider a bear. It is pretty easy to document bear in SW Kansas. Cinnamon bears are easily documented in eastern Colorado. Both are under 200 miles. I am not saying that this is a bear, but it cannot be ruled out either. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest CaptainMorgan Posted June 10, 2011 Share Posted June 10, 2011 http://www.nbcactionnews.com/gallery/weather/weather_photo_gallery/May-2011-storms-in-Kansas-City Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest BuzzardEater Posted June 10, 2011 Share Posted June 10, 2011 Who will be the next contestant on Name That Poo? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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