Racoons

[cab67]

5. cayenne pepper

Depending on what you're using for feed, a small amount of hot pepper - cayenne usually works fine - mixed in will deter most mammals. Birds aren't sensitive to capsaicin, which is what makes hot pepper hot. Sprinkling some on the ground might also help.

One can buy bird seed blends with hot pepper or capsaicin. Suet cakes, too - though these are also somewhat more brittle, and icterids really REALLY love them, so they tend not to last very long during the spring.

I've seen that chipmunks are somewhat more willing to try out hot food, so I've upgraded to ground habanero on a couple of my sunflower seed feeders.