Animals in trees! Any run-ins worth telling about!

[Greenstar]

Anyone have any uncommon encounters with animals or critters in trees worth telling about, e.g. physical contact with an animal, attack, or uncommon animal?

Not just the "the squirrel came barreling past me and I almost #### myself!" because you're a newbie and never seen a tree rat, or scared one to death.

I mean an attack or something!

I've encountered squirrels before, and even had long standoffs with them. In one instance I didn't really know what he was looking for. His long limb with nest and four babies were clearly gone already, and on the ground, but he wouldn't leave me alone. He had a clear path to the ground, and a clear route to anywhere, yet he kept running around me, and was almost stalking me for about 10-15mins this went on, I'm not kidding.
I just stood there with my handsaw drawn, ready to slash, looking like the bigger animal, and I think he finally realized I would crush him and fled.
Can squirrels attack? Is it dangerous? And more importantly I guess, do they get rabies? because I'm not afraid of a pesky little squirrel bite!

I've never encountered a bear in the woods, or mad moose. (I know that has nothing to do with tree work, but real stories are exciting anyway and worth hearing.)
I myself am not afraid to be out in the outback/deep backcountry in the middle of the night with no light though. Have done extensive backcountry trekking and have never been afraid of an animal. I've been off trail for days, hiking through chest high scrub, grassland, forest, and swamp.

I'm sure the first time I meet a bear will be a different story though! :deadhorse:

ps. how about a tree sloth or a snake in another country or something! My boy had a deadly snake scare the #### out of him up in a tree down in Costa Rica doing some heavy view clearance work in the pacific coastal jungles down in Dominical!

 

[TheLumberJack]

I've encountered every animal in the woods that exists in the eastern US...black bear, moose, elk, deer, coyote, etc...no real crazy stories but to this day when I see a bear my ass tightens a bit! One of my first encounters was in the woods in NJ around sunset cooking ramen noodles and a large, probably 500lb+ black bear came around the backside of my tent and stared at me for a good 3 minutes. The advice on dealing with bear is polarly opposite. Most advice will be make loud noises (whistles, bang pots, wave arms, etc) but for every person who agrees with that there are others who say the opposite (no eye contact, minimal movement). I chose the latter and continue to do that to this day and have never had a bear turn aggressive.

Actually in trees....aside from thousands of squirrel and birds, I've seen a couple porcupine and coons.

 

[prentice110]

could go on for hours about squirls, had 1 take a dive off my foot 60ft up a white oak once. First time a racoon shows you his teeth will make you think twice about stickin yer face in some hollow spots while climbin. Anyone ever buck logs off a dead tree , have the bark slide off and get 30 or so bats in the face? how bout twice in the same tree? Had to deal with a squirl that wouldnt leave me alone on a differnt job same day...

 

[bowtechmadman]

I inadvertantly cut a raccoon in half when bucking up a tree I had just dropped. First thought was that I had cut myself when the blood started getting flung on my chaps from the chain.

 

[Rickytree]

Never got attacked but a cool story. We were cutting down a tree on the side of a road and a squirrel had climbed up the highest limb. After trying to scare it down with my rope decided to just cut it down and it would be fine. As the piece came over the squirrel had jumped. I didn't see it and the ground guy was pointing up in a tree across the 2 lane road past a ditch. It only lost about 10 feet in height but there it was. It was a flying squirrel and she was amazing!

 

[rngrchad]

I posted this in an older thread......copied it here...

http://arboristsite.com/showthread.php?p=1403349&highlight=coyote+tree#post1403349

I think your method of thinking is flawed or ignorant.

I need heat: therefore I'm entitled to cutting them all down. Hangers, leaners, windfall, deadfall; I can see that for heat but c'mon man. Be real.

Another thing about some feeling that the tree is "useless by itself away from the forest":

I used to climb trees limb by limb when I was younger. Still do just not on a daily occurance anymore. Anyhow, I climbed an old Oak once on a buddies farm. It had a huge opening about 4ft up the tree that I could fit into. I stuck my head into that oak's cavity and YIKES...there were a whole den of coyote pups and momma. I remembering looking eye to eye with her she didn't growl or anything just kinda cowered into a ball ontop of her little ones. On the same tree there was racoon scat, owl pellets and deer droppings at it's base. Red-tailed hawks would sit in it's limbs overlooking the fencelines ready to prey on field mice.....YOU try to tell me a tree like that has little importance. Maybe I'm just in an edgy mood but I got to say....wake up and be more observant of that tree's surroundings. You would be suprised how many creatures use it as a safe haven, or for food, shelter or a high-rise with which they use to find another mate.

 

[Rickytree]

Other time had some grey horned owls in the tree that we had cut down. These guys would open their mouths just a half an inch then close it to make a clicking noise. Not lying it was as loud as clapping your hands. I still don't know how they did it. Nature is amazing for sure!!

 

[rngrchad]

Other time had some grey horned owls in the tree that we had cut down. These guys would open their mouths just a half an inch then close it to make a clicking noise. Not lying it was as loud as clapping your hands. I still don't know how they did it. Nature is amazing for sure!!

Those owls might have been mad at you, but at least they appreciate seeing good work, and gave you a good applause for a nice drop huh?

 

[prentice110]

Another time trimming oaks in a bucket, boomed up and saw an owl fly over and landed in a nearby spruce. Didnt think much of it till I turned around and saw i was an arms length from her 4 babies. Got a pic of it on the groundies phone but he broke it before we could put it on the comp. Also had a baby deer dang near run into the grunty on the rope once. Was pretty funny, he never saw it comin! Its momma didnt think it was too funny tho,

 

[Rickytree]

Actually don't like doing removals in the spring for the reason of the young animals. Not suppost to trim, no removals? Time to starve! some more.

 

[prentice110]

By the way, anyone ever get calls to get cats out of trees?

 

[TheLumberJack]

By the way, anyone ever get calls to get cats out of trees?

yep...and i got it out with a throw bag!

(not a big cat fan!)

 

[John Ellison]

I had a bear get after me once. (You) "What did you do?" (Me) "Well, I outrun him."




But I had the advantage, I was running on bare ground and the bear was running in ####!

 

[md_tree_dood]

This thread reminds me of a joke.

How do you know what type of bear is attacking you? When you climb a tree a black bear will climb up after you and kill you. A grizzly will knock the tree over and kill you.

I think that's how it goes, either way, you end up dead.

 

[md_tree_dood]

By the way, anyone ever get calls to get cats out of trees?

Yes. Best way is a 16oz throwball and a big shot. But seriously, I've done it once and will never do it again.

 

[TheLumberJack]

solution:

 

[spankrz]

well, about 2 weeks ago my dad was doing a safetey training at a golf course in louisville. he droppen a 40"+ oak that was hollow, the tree exploded when it hit. there where 2 coons in the top of it. one hobbled off, the other was dead. dad got his felling axe and chopped the tail, it's salting right now.

 

[Ontario_Logger]

one day i was felling i dropped a hollow 38" yellow birch i knew the bottom was hollow so i walked down the tree tapping with my ax to see how far it was hollow i cut the top and seen it was hollow stuck my head and there was a coon 2 feet away and he wasnt happy. thats the last time i will ever stick my head in a hollow tree.

 

[Rftreeman]

snakes, squirrels, raccoons, opossums, bees or cats which should I talk about?

Well, let's talk snakes, I was climbing a large poplar early one morning and a large black snake decided to come down (we were 30 feet up) so I yelled for a pruner pole to knock him off the tree and he ended up falling on me so I screamed like a girl and threw him off me, another time I was climbing a maple that had been topped a 100 times over the years (under the 3 phrase) and you know how they get the hollows where the old cuts are, well one of the holes had a 2 ft copper head snake coiled up in it and it was staring at me and I had no where to go so I used my handsaw to grab it and toss it out and I thought it was all over, well, it wasn't, my foreman killed it and tied the damn thing to my rope and as I was making a B-line for the ground the thing came up between my legs and you guessed it, I screamed like a girl......


disclaimer: I didn't really scream like a girl, I'm just being funny, no really I am.

 

[TreeTopKid]

About a month ago we were in a gnarly old Live oak and there was an Opossum
up in the first crotch (trying to sleep) I had my phone so decided to take some pictures as I did my colleague who was about 12ft above gives it a massive poke with the pole saw making the thing turn into a spitting, hissing, fluffy Tazmanian devil.

I almost crapped my pants and beat a hasty retreat but there are three photos one just as he poked it and two of the disgruntled rat that I've just uploaded and will post here as soon as they've been compressed. I hate those things I'm forever bumping into them (check the Hurricane Ike photos) and they stink something terrible close up how people can eat them is beyond me LOL!