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Racoon

Procyon lotor

Description:

The raccoon, Procyon lotor, sometimes spelled as racoon, also known as the common raccoon, North American raccoon, northern raccoon and colloquially as coon, is a medium-sized mammal native to North America. It is the largest of the procyonid family, having a body length of 40 to 70 cm (16 to 28 in) and a body weight of 3.5 to 9 kg (8 to 20 lb). The raccoon is usually nocturnal and is omnivorous, wih a diet consisting of about 40% invertebrates, 33% plant foods, and 27% vertebrates. It has a grayish coat, of which almost 90% is dense underfur, which insulates against cold weather. Two of its most distinctive features are its extremely dexterous front paws and its facial mask, which are themes in the mythology of several Native American tribes. Raccoons are noted for their intelligence, with studies showing that they are able to remember the solution to tasks up to three years later.

Habitat:

The original habitats of the raccoon are deciduous and mixed forests of North America, but due to their adaptability they have extended their range to mountainous areas, coastal marshes, and urban areas, where many homeowners consider them to be pests. As a result of escapes and deliberate introductions in the mid-20th century, raccoons are now also distributed across the European mainland, the Caucasus region and Japan.

Notes:

These guys follow me around the woods all night and raid my moth light traps before I get to collect my moths. They're super sneaky and what ever I try to do so they can't get to my moths, they always out-smart me.. Can't really be too mad at them, because they're too cute looking.

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1 Comment

Dan Doucette
Dan Doucette 12 years ago

I have almost the exact same spotting.
http://www.projectnoah.org/spottings/652...

Kingston, Ontario, Canada

Spotted on Jun 14, 2011
Submitted on Jun 14, 2011

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