MAMMALIA—RACCOON. 15 
THE RACCOON. 

THE raccoon is a native of most parts of North America; but it,has never 
yet been found on the Old Continent. Buffon asserts that it is common in 
South America, but we believe it has never been found farther south than 
Mexico. 
It is an animal of about the same size as a small badger; its body is short 
and bulky; its fur is fine, long, thick, blackish at the surface, and gray 
towards the bottom ; its head is like that of the fox, but its ears are round 
and shorter ; its eyes are large, of a yellowish green, and over them there is 
a black and transverse stripe; its snout is sharp; its tail is thick, but taper- 
ing towards a point, and marked alternately from one end to the other with 
black and white, and brownish rings, and is at least as long as the body: its 
fore legs are much shorter than the hind ones, and both are armed with five 
strong, sharp claws. 
It inhabits the southern parts of the fur districts, being found as far north 
_as Red river, in latitude fifty degrees, from which quarter about one hundred 
skins are procured annually, by the Hudson’s Bay Company. [If there is no 
mistake as to the identity of the species, the raccoon extends farther north 
on the shores of the Pacific than it does on the eastern side of the Rocky 
Mountains. Dixon and Portlock obtained cloaks of raccoon skins from the 
natives of Cook’s river, in latitude sixty degrees; and skins supposed to be 
of the raccoon, were also seen at Nootka Sound, by Captain Cook. Lewis 

1 Procyon lotor, Lrxy. The genus Procyon has six upper and six lower incisors; two 
tipper and two lower canines; twelve upper and §alvellwer molars. Lower incisors on 
the same line ; the three posterior molars tuberculous ; feet pentadactyle; nails sharp; 
muzzle pointed ; ears small; tail long; six ventral mamme. 
