Somethin's poopin' on ma porch

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boomerang

boomerang

Lifer
Jun 19, 2000
18,883
641
126
For years during the warm months of the year we've had some critter poopin' on our porch. They are very similar to mouse droppings in shape but are too big for a mouse. What's interesting is that it has been going on for so many years that's it's almost like each generation is teaching their offspring that the corner of our porch is the place. I have a hard time believing that some critter the size to produce these droppings could live in excess of ten years.

Enter - Foscam. I've already got a shot of the first suspect but no droppings were left behind. This is the first year we've ever seen chipmunks around so I don't suspect this is the culprit.

Snap_20150711-160640-2.jpg


I'm going to leave the camera on the porch overnight. Stay tuned.
 
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lxskllr

lxskllr

No Lifer
Nov 30, 2004
59,071
9,481
126
It's probably him. He knocks on the door to use the bathroom, you don't hear him, and he poops on the porch.
 
highland145

highland145

Lifer
Oct 12, 2009
43,973
6,335
136
boomerang said:
It's no shirt, no shoes, no bathroom at our house. What, he can't read the sign?
Click to expand...
lol One of the local Asian owned quick shop signs says, "No clothes, no shoes...."

Asked him if he had any nekked customers. He said he wasn't taking a chance.

:D
 
Iron Woode

Iron Woode

Elite Member
Super Moderator
Oct 10, 1999
31,159
12,691
136
we used to have this toad poop on our porch during the night. not sure why he did that there.
 
rh71

rh71

No Lifer
Aug 28, 2001
52,844
1,049
126
possibly cottontail rabbit which are wild... that's the type of poop they have... pellets.
 
RY62

RY62

Senior member
Mar 13, 2005
891
153
106
Definitely a toad. Bugs are attracted to the porch light. Toad is attracted to the bugs. Toad gorges on bugs and drops the pellets. We get the same thing every year. Have to be careful going in or out at night to not step on them.
 
boomerang

boomerang

Lifer
Jun 19, 2000
18,883
641
126
Too small for a rabbit and the porch light isn't on unless we're expecting someone. We never leave it on overnight. But I am kinda liking the toad theory.

No overnight deposits last night which is not unusual. We sometimes go three or four nights with nothing. But boy, do I wish I'd ratcheted down the sensitivity settings on the camera. It recorded on every insect that crossed the path of the lens and besides recording, it sends me emails too. I had 50 emails in my inbox this morning, all containing a series of three stills that I felt compelled to look through.

I'm going to have the camera outside every night I can. The porch area is inset but I will still have to be aware of rain and the dew point. We've been getting some unusually chilly overnights for mid July. The camera is not exposed to the point that dew would be a problem but it's an indoor camera and it doesn't seem like it would be best to have it outdoors when conditions are marginal.

I will post back with a pic when I catch the culprit.
 
boomerang

boomerang

Lifer
Jun 19, 2000
18,883
641
126
I went to fetch the camera because they are talking about rain moving in and lo and behold, there be poop. It can be hard to see through the blinds from inside the house because it's right in the corner closest to the house.

Although I had 50 emails, 72 recordings were on my Synology. In a spread of 23 minutes between two recordings, there was no poop and then there was poop. No living thing appeared on the recordings except some flying insects.

My wife has been saying all along that she thought it was bats. I think she's right. Next opportunity, I will put the camera back out there and aim it up high into the upper corner. What's interesting is that the poop appeared close to midnight. That is a good couple of hours after dusk. So the bat or bats are actually flying into the recess provided by the inset doorway and using the exact same corner every time as their dumping grounds.

I had thought that if it was bats that perhaps they were spending the day between the fascia board and the gutter because I had one doing that years ago on the back side of the house. I could understand them launching off for their nightly activities and doing their business but they typically don't wait that long after dusk to emerge for the evening.
 
GagHalfrunt

GagHalfrunt

Lifer
Apr 19, 2001
25,284
1,997
126
boomerang said:
In a spread of 23 minutes between two recordings, there was no poop and then there was poop. No living thing appeared on the recordings except some flying insects.
Click to expand...

You have ghost poop! Save some, you're going to be rich.
 
IndyColtsFan

IndyColtsFan

Lifer
Sep 22, 2007
33,655
687
126
boomerang said:
For years during the warm months of the year we've had some critter poopin' on our porch. They are very similar to mouse droppings in shape but are too big for a mouse. What's interesting is that it has been going on for so many years that's it's almost like each generation is teaching their offspring that the corner of our porch is the place. I have a hard time believing that some critter the size to produce these droppings could live in excess of ten years.

Enter - Foscam. I've already got a shot of the first suspect but no droppings were left behind. This is the first year we've ever seen chipmunks around so I don't suspect this is the culprit.

Snap_20150711-160640-2.jpg


I'm going to leave the camera on the porch overnight. Stay tuned.
Click to expand...

The same thing happened to me. I will almost guarantee you're right that it isn't a chipmunk. Want to know what it likely is?

Bats.

I had poop showing up on my front porch a couple of summers but I never saw what it was. I came home from work one night and found 2 bats perched at the top of my entryway. I took care of those two but it still happens, so bats are finding my porch every summer and enjoying the overhang. I just leave them alone now.

EDIT: Just saw this:

boomerang said:
My wife has been saying all along that she thought it was bats. I think she's right. Next opportunity, I will put the camera back out there and aim it up high into the upper corner. What's interesting is that the poop appeared close to midnight. That is a good couple of hours after dusk. So the bat or bats are actually flying into the recess provided by the inset doorway and using the exact same corner every time as their dumping grounds.

I had thought that if it was bats that perhaps they were spending the day between the fascia board and the gutter because I had one doing that years ago on the back side of the house. I could understand them launching off for their nightly activities and doing their business but they typically don't wait that long after dusk to emerge for the evening.
Click to expand...

Yeah, I almost guarantee it is bats. Mine don't hide behind anything -- they cling to the bricks in the corners by the ceiling.
 
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Charmonium

Charmonium

Lifer
May 15, 2015
10,321
3,406
136
An obvious question here has been overlooked. How do bats crap when they're upside down. Of course the internet has the answers to all things scatological so I found this gem from way back in 1998.

But just this once we'll humor her and make a call to Bat Conservation International in Austin, Texas, experts on all things batty. So, we asked, how does all that bat poop end up on the bottom of the cave when the poop-making machinery points up? We find out right away, it's rough to generalize about bats. There are more than 950 species of the mammals worldwide, and they're pretty independent thinkers. But yes, they do spend at least some hours each day roosting upside down, and yes, they do poop. But their secret is, they don't do those two things at the same time. Bats sometimes go to the bathroom on the wing, so that's no problem. When they're snoozing in their roosts-- a cave, a tree, an attic and nature calls, they flip themselves right-side up, fire away, then flip back again. Most bats have a "thumb" along the top edge of their wings that can grip a roost as well as their feet can. And if you think pooping is tough, consider giving birth upside down. Many bats do that too. I won't run down the usual list of misconceptions about bats. Maybe you'll see the fuzzy flyers in a different light when you know that they help pollinate the blue agave from which we get tequila
Click to expand...
So it sounds like somebody might be roosting in that corner.
 
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