Bad news bears!

Lee and I arrived at the oasis near daylight, loaded for bear! Lee had brought his welder and was determined to prevent the bear from feeding at the feeder. The feeder was empty when we arrived, and there were two piles of bear scat replete with bird seed. While the bear hadn't been able to jerk the stakes out of the ground, he had jerked enough that the feeder could be jiggled. Apparently enough to shake feed out of it.

 Lee went immediately to work...

... while I watered the trees.

... and watched birds....

Common Yellowthroat male

I must say, the feeder is now a one-of-a-kind work of art! I just hope it works.

We didn't bother to arrange rocks around it this time. The House Finches seem comfortable with the new decor.

My favorite bird of the day was a visiting Hepatic Tanager.

I put the trail cam on the feeder. I look forward to checking it in several days. Might be interesting. The unwelcome mat worked, so maybe an unwelcoming feeder will too. We have no choice but to live with bears.