There’s a new squirrel in town, with some kind of lump. It doesn’t look like a botfly lump. It does look rather painful. It’s on the left side of belly, a swollen round node with dark red skin on top. My guess is “very well-fed tick” but “abcess” is also a contender.
I almost got a photo of him. I saw the poor thing, got out the camera, screwed on the telephoto lens, set up the blind, found him, zoomed in, focused, and…the battery died.
By the time I took out the camera, changed the battery, and got back, Scarface had chased off the miscreant for the crime of standing within twenty feet of the feeder, and I missed my shot.
We’ll see if he comes back, and hopefully I can play Spot That Malady. I hope it’s a tick. I hate ticks, but “Ticky” is a better name than “Abcessy” by a country mile.
