RACCOON 



hairs; underparts grayish white; hind feet pale gray; dark 

 rings on tail narrow. Total length, 34 inches; tail vertebrae, 

 12.4 inches; hind foot, 5.2 inches. Found in California in 

 "Lower Sonoran Zone on the Colorado Desert, in Imperial 

 County, and north along the Colorado River at least to 

 Needles." (Grinnell) 



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 The Raccoon has a distinctive color pattern and even if it 

 was not an animal with which most people have become 

 familiar, either through seeing it in Zoos, as fur coats, or as 

 sketched in the press, it could be readily identified from a 

 written description. The combination of the following char- 

 acters, robust form, ringed tail, and black mask across the 

 eyes, is found in no other North American mammal. 



Since the vogue in furs has favored the use of Raccoon fur, 

 the long, loose, gray and black pelage of this mammal has 

 become a favorite for coats. It has long been a popular beast 

 of the chase and in some sections of the country "coon" hunt- 

 ing at night is the high water mark of the year's sport. As a 

 pet the Raccoon takes high rank, although it has somewhat 

 of a penchant for getting into mischief and can not be trusted 

 too much at large. 



Raccoons prefer the vicinity of streams, lakes, or marshes 

 and make their homes in hollow trees, hollow logs, or less often 

 in the rocks or in burrows. They are first-class climbers and 

 are not found away from trees or brush. A peculiarity which 

 shows the fondness of these animals for water is the fact that 

 whenever possible they wash their food before eating it. A 

 frog drippmg from the stream where it was caught will be 

 washed before the Raccoon eats it. 



The Raccoon has a querulous voice which he is not bashful 

 in using. Seton gives the common calls as a "churr" when 

 squabbling for food, snarls and barks when fighting, "err-err- 

 err" when the tame Coon begs for food, and finally a long 

 drawn tremulous "whoo-oo-oo-oo" in the deep of the night, 

 very similar to the call of a Screech Owl. 



The number of young in a Coon litter usually is four, but 

 varies from three to six. The young Coons arrive in April to 

 May. Raccoons hibernate during cold weather, remaining 

 dormant for about three months, depending upon the latitude, 

 or in the southern part of their range they may not hibernate 

 at all. 



