Raccoons and related mammals
Raccoons and related mammals belong to the family Procyonidae, which includes raccoons, coatis, kinkajous, olingos, and ringtails, all native to the Americas. Most members of this family are arboreal and thrive in temperate and tropical environments rich in water and trees. They exhibit diverse dietary habits as omnivores, consuming a wide range of foods including insects, fruits, nuts, and small animals, adapting their diet based on seasonal availability. Raccoons, particularly common in the United States, are known for their distinctive appearance featuring masked facial markings and ringed tails, while also demonstrating nocturnal behavior, foraging for food at night. Coatis, in contrast, are diurnal and are often found in social groups, displaying a different lifestyle within the same family. The reproductive patterns of these mammals vary, with different mating seasons and gestation periods. Understanding the characteristics and behaviors of raccoons and their relatives provides insight into their ecological roles and adaptations to diverse habitats.
Raccoons and related mammals
Raccoon Family Facts
Classification:
- Kingdom: Animalia
- Subkingdom: Bilateria
- Phylum: Chordata
- Subphylum: Vertebrata
- Class: Mammalia
- Order: Carnivora
- Family: Procyonidae
- Genera and species:Procyon (raccoons), three species:Procyon cancrivorus (crab-eating raccoon),Procyon lotor (common raccoon, twenty-two subspecies),Procyon pygmaeus (Cozumel raccoon);Nasua andNasuella (coatis), four species:Nasua narica (white-nosed coati),Nasua nasua (South American coati),Nasuella meridensis (eastern mountain coati),Nasuella olivacea (western mountain coati);Bassaricyon (olingos and olinguitos), four species:B. alleni (eastern lowland olingo),B. gabbii (northern olingo),B. medius (western lowland olingo),B. neblina (olinguitos);Bassariscus (ringtails and cacomistles), two species:B. astutus (ring-tailed cat),B. sumichrasti (cacomistle); andPotos, one species:P. flavus (kinkajous)
- Geographical location: North, Central, and South America, and the Himalayas
- Habitat: Mostly lower elevations of temperate and tropical regions, in areas well supplied with water and trees, although some inhabit mountains twelve thousand feet high
- Gestational period: Raccoons, 2 months; coatis, 2.5 months; kinkajous, 4 months; olingos 2.5 months; ringtails, 1.5 months; cacomistles, 2 months
- Life span: Ten to thirty years, depending on species
- Special anatomy: Dexterous five-toed front paws; sixth, thumblike toe; prehensile tail
The raccoon family, Procyonidae, includes raccoons, coatis, kinkajous, olingos and olinguitos, ringtails, and cacomistles. (Red pandas were once considered part of the raccoon family, but they have been recategorized into their own family, the Ailuridae, based on phylogenetic research.) All are arboreal. Procyonids are native to the Americas. Most live in the lower elevations of temperate and tropical regions, in areas rich in water and trees.
Procyonids are omnivores, eating insects, crayfish, crabs, fishes, amphibians, reptiles, birds, small mammals, nuts, fruits, roots, and young plants. Procyonids eat what is available, including carrion, depending on season, locale, and availability.
The raccoon family is nocturnal, except coatis, which are diurnal. They mate at different times of the year. Gestation is about three months. Life spans of procyonids are up to thirty years in captivity but only ten years in the wild.
Raccoons
All members of the raccoon family have small bodies, long tails, ringed tails, and facial markings. Kinkajous lack markings but have prehensile tails that aid arboreal movement. Raccoons are carnivores of the genus Procyon. They are common throughout the United States and also inhabit southern Canada, Central America, and South America. They are foxlike in appearance, with a broad head, a pointy muzzle, and short, erect ears. Raccoons have long fur and bushy tails. They are gray to brown above and lighter beneath. Black cheek patches and white whiskers adorn their heads. Their tails are marked with dark rings. Each paw has five toes, and most raccoons are about 3.5 feet long, including a 1-foot tail. The crab-eating raccoon (Procyon cancrivorus), a species of Central and South America, is larger than common raccoons and has dark gray fur with yellow patches.
Common raccoons (Procyon lotor) inhabit trees near ponds and streams, or near human homes. They hunt at night for poultry, rodents, bird eggs, insects, fish, frogs, carrion, nuts, and fruit. Those that live near human habitations are particularly fond of scavenging in garbage cans and raiding bird feeders. In northern areas, raccoons winter in dens, rarely emerging. Males are solitary except for mating, while females and young live in groups. Raccoons mate in winter. The following spring, they give birth to up to six young, born in tree dens. Young raccoons depend on their mothers for five months. Mothers and offspring stay together for a year.
Coatis
Coatis inhabit South American lowland forests and grasslands, and dry, high-altitude forests. They have long, furry, ringed tails, are fine climbers and live in trees and on the ground. Unlike most Procyonidae, they are diurnal. Their bodies look like those of other raccoons, and their front limbs have long claws. Males grow to 4 feet long and weigh fourteen pounds, while females are 3.5 feet long and weigh ten pounds. They are a yellow-red color on their bodies, while their faces are black, with white spots around each eye and on each cheek. Their throats and bellies are also white. Coatis eat insects and other arthropods, crabs, frogs, lizards, mice, and reptile eggs.
Adult males are solitary but females and young live in bands of up to twelve members. Mating occurs in February or March, when a visiting male impregnates each adult female in a band. Gestation is 2.5 months, and about a month before birthing, each female leaves the band and builds a tree nest. There, she gives birth to up to five babies, each weighing six ounces. Babies are nestbound for six weeks. Then mother and young rejoin the band. Life spans of coatis are seven to nine years in the wild and up to fourteen years in captivity.
Olingos and Olinguitos
Olingos and olinguitos belong to the genus Bassaricyon and are native to the Central and South American rainforests. Olingos are similar to kinkajous; however, they lack prehensile tails. The olinguito was first discovered in 2006 and the species was first described in 2013. Olinguitos live in the montane forests of the Andes in Colombia and Ecuador. Olinguitos are the smallest member of the Procyonidae family, weighing approximately two pounds on average.
Principal Terms
arboreal: living in trees
carrion: dead animals
diurnal: active during the day
gestation: duration of pregnancy
nocturnal: active at night
omnivore: an animal that eats plant and animal foods
prehensile: able to grip things
solitary: living alone
Bibliography
Laidler, Keith, and Liz Laidler. Pandas: Giants of the Bamboo Forest. London: BBC, 1992. Print.
MacClintock, Dorcas, and J. Sharkey Thomas. A Natural History of Raccoons. New York: Scribner’s, 1981. Print.
Otfinoski, Steven. Raccoons. New York: Cavendish Square, 2014. Print.
Patent, Dorothy Hinshaw. Raccoons, Coatimundis, and Their Family. New York: Holiday House, 1979. Print.
Read, Tracy C. Exploring the World of Raccoons. Buffalo: Firefly, 2010. Print.
Ritchie, Rita, Jeff Fair, Alan Carey, Sandy Carey, and John F. McGee. The Wonder of Raccoons. Milwaukee: Gareth Stevens, 1996. Print.
Stromberg, Joseph. "For the First Time in 35 Years, a New Carnivorous Mammal Species Is Discovered in the Americas." Smithsonian Magazine. Smithsonian Inst., 14 Aug. 2013. Web. 4 Oct. 2016.