Was he making sure you wouldn't cause a forest fire ??
A few weeks ago, a guy much smaller than gentle Ben there, we'll call him Pepe'.... was mulling about eating bird seed at the base of our feeders and I watched him for the longest time. I made all kinds of noises and talked to him and he never once raised his tail.
I also was indulging in libations, but only about 6' away...... :Oops: