RA CCOON FAMIL Y. 41 



Continuing our account in Dr. Merriam's own words, we find that in the 

 Adirondack region " the raccoon hibernates during the severest part of the winter, 

 retiring to his nest rather early, and appearing again in February or March, 

 according to the earliness or lateness of the season. Disliking to wade through 

 deep snow he does not come out much till the alternate thawing and freezing of 

 the surface, suggestive of coming spring, makes a hard crust upon which he can 

 run with ease. He does not usually walk many miles during a single night, and 

 consequently is soon tracked to the tree, in some hole of which he has retired for 

 the day. It is unusual to find a raccoon alone, for they commonly live and travel 

 in small companies, consisting of the several members of a single family. They do 

 not return to the same nest every morning, but often make little excursions in 

 various directions, being gone several days at a time, and taking refuge, about day- 

 light, in any convenient arboreal shelter. Though preferring a hollow limb high 

 up in some giant elm, ash, or basswood, they will put up with almost any kind of 

 a hollow trunk. I have known them to spend the day in old stubs, in hollow logs, 

 and even in the poor shelter afforded by the angle where a falling tree had lodged 

 in a crutch." Probably, in Central America and the more southern districts of 

 North America, this raccoon remains active throughout the winter, as the climate 

 would not necessitate any hibernation. In the Adirondacks the young are 

 produced in the spring generally during the month of April; and there are 

 usually from four to six in a litter. They remain with their parent about a 

 twelvemonth. The nest which, as already mentioned, is placed high up in a 

 tree, has but little care bestowed upon its construction. 



It has long been known that this raccoon is in the habit of moistening its food 

 with water before eating it ; and it doubtless received its distinctive specific name 

 from this habit, which has been of late years verified by Mr. Bartlett's observa- 

 tions on specimens in the Zoological Society's Gardens. The raccoon is one of the 

 most valuable of the fur-bearing animals of North America, and is consequently 

 much persecuted. Raccoon skins were formerly used as a recognised circulating 

 medium in the States of the Mississippi Valley, and were usually valued at 25 

 cents apiece. 



According to Mr. D. Arrowsmith, the raccoon may be easily caught in steel 

 traps ; but it is essential that these should be set under water near the margins 

 of swamps or streams. The more sporting method is, however, to hunt these 

 animals at night with specially - trained dogs, which are usually a breed of 

 fox-hounds. It has often been stated that the raccoon leaves a very faint foot- 

 scent ; but this opinion is controverted by Mr. Arrowsmith, who states that he has 

 known a hound hunt a raccoon at midday over snow, on a trail which had been 

 made the previous night. The raccoons, after a short run, invariably take to the 

 tree, where they are shot by the hunter, unless they conceal themselves in a hole. 

 Crab-Eating The crab - eating raccoon (P. cancrivorus) is a nearly-allied 



Raccoon. South American species > distinguished by its superior dimensions and 

 its much shorter fur, as well as by its proportionately larger teeth. It is found 

 typically from Panama to Colombia and Guiana ; but Professor Mivart is of opinion 

 that the raccoons found further to the south, and extending through Brazil to 

 Paraguay, are entitled to rank as a distinct species, on account of their darker 



