I noticed sudden damage to the bark of my dogwood tree.  There are no holes in the bark so I don't believe it is insect related.  I do have a feeder hanging close by that has been there forever and I've never had this problem before. The damage is approx. 5.5 ft. up the tree. I do have a lot of squirrels and I recently saw a raccoon in my backyard in the wee hours of the morning .. I was wondering what you think it might be??? I've searched the internet and saw something on squirrel barking but it's questionable .. I can't say for sure that it's the same thing.  It's not like they don't have enough food .. they are always eating the seed that falls to the ground or trying to get into the feeders.  If indeed it is the squirrels, I'm not quite sure how to stop them from getting on the tree .. I've not only seen them climb up the tree, but they jump to it from another tree.  Thank you!