Mystery in the Back Yard!

A couple of evenings ago, I was looking out the back door to watch the birds at the feeders.  I looked up into the redbud tree and noticed a shape, but couldn't make out exactly what it was.  Hoping for something unusual, like an owl, I grabbed the camera, and quietly slid out the door.  It wasn't until I got relatively close that I realized it was one of the feral cats in the neighborhood.  Nothing unusual there, except it's the first time I'd seen a cat that high up in the tree.

When I first moved into the house and found out that one of the backyard neighbors feeds the feral cats, I wasn't too thrilled.  I love my cats, but unfortunately, feral cats are a different story.  Plus the food they leave out attracts skunks (we're not that far from several wooded areas).  But, after talking to the family, I found they not only feed the cats, but they also take them to be neutered/spayed and get their initial shots and testing.  I'm OK with that!  As long as the ferals aren't regenerating, we're all better off.

When I approached the tree, the cat had its back to me and its head down, so I had to get pretty close to figure out that it was "just" a cat.  He (I'm assuming) didn't like me as close as I was or didn't want me talking to him, and gingerly made his way down the tree.

I love his markings; the pic above really shows off the "tiger" stripes.

I love little white paws!  I could just as easily say I love little paws, but there's something attractive about a white paw on a tiger cat.

At this point, I couldn't decide if he was shooting me disdainful looks or an "I'm gonna get even with you by chasing a mouse into your house" look.  Not a fan of a mouse in the house, but now know that the indoor boys won't let it live; just hope they continue to leave the dead ones where I can find them . . .

So sadly, the mystery of the unknown shape was resolved without fanfare.  The detection skills were not given an opportunity to be finely honed.  Sigh.  But, I did get to see this beauty AND chase off the black cat that gets my boys all riled up.  I don't know why, but they only react strongly to the black feral and the long haired gray feral cats.  Are cats capable of prejudice?  I see more observation of my boys observing other cats in all of our futures . . . crazy cat hypothesis may follow.