AND AMERICAN RURAL SPORTS. 
73 
THE RACCOON. 
PROCYON LOTOR. 
[Plate VII. Vol. 2.] 
Ursus Lotor; Lin. Erxl. Bodd. — Vulpes Americana ; 
Charleton. — Le Raton-, Buff. Hist. Nat. 8, pi. 43. 
— Procyon Lotor; Cuv. Reg. An. p. 143. Sabine app. 
p. 649. — Coati Brasiliensium; Klein. — Mapach, etc. 
Mexicanorum. — Menagerie of Living Animals, ex- 
hibited in Philadelphia, winter of 1831-2. 
There are few parts of the American continent in 
which the Raccoon has not, at some period, been found 
native, from the borders of Nootka Sound, to the forests 
of Mexico, and still more southern regions. Yet the 
Count de Buffon asserts, that this animal was originally 
from South America, and is most numerous in hot climates, 
without giving any fact on which his opinion is founded, 
or supporting his declaration by the observations of other 
naturalists. Sonnini properly observes, that neither Fre- 
zier, Ulloa, nor Molina, who have given descriptions of 
the animals of Peru, Brazil, and Chili, make any mention 
of the Raccoon; and, in his own long and numerous jour- 
neys in Guiana, he never found one among the great num- 
ber of quadrupeds which hold undisturbed possession of 
the vast forests, by which that interesting region is over- 
shadowed. 
But the most positive proofs of their existence, in the 
northern parts of this continent, are to be found in the jour- 
nals of the most respectable observers. By Dampier, they 
were seen near the southern point of California, in the 
22° of N. latitude; Bartram found them on the isle of St. 
Simon, near the coast of Georgia, in 30° of N. latitude; 
and the celebrated Capt. Cook saw them in considerable 
numbers at Nootka and Prince William’s Sound. Most 
probably, had this enterprising voyager landed still far- 
ther north, he would have discovered the Raccoon there, 
as the natives of Prince William’s Sound were, in a great 
degree, clothed with skins of this animal. 
Were we to form an opinion of this animal’s character 
solely from external appearances, the mingled expression of 
sagacity and innocence exhibited in his aspect, his personal 
neatness and gentle movements, might all incline us to 
believe that he possessed a guileless and placable disposi- 
tion. But in this, as in most other cases where judg- 
ments are formed without sufficient examination, we should 
be in error, and find, that to the capricious mischievous- 
ness of the monkey, the Raccoon adds a blood-fhirsty and 
vindictive spirit peculiarly his own. In the wild state, 
T 
this sanguinary appetite frequently leads to his own de- 
struction, which his nocturnal habits might otherwise 
avert; but as he slaughters the tenants of the poultry-yard 
with indiscriminate ferocity, the vengeance of the plun- 
dered farmer speedily retaliates on him the death so libe- 
rally dealt among the feathered victims. This destructive 
propensity of the Raccoon is more remarkable, when we 
observe that his teeth are not unsuited for eating fruits. 
When he destroys wild or domesticated birds, he puts to 
death a great number, without consuming any part of them, 
except the head, or the blood which is sucked from the 
neck. 
Being peculiarly fond of sweet substances, the Raccoon 
is occasionally very destructive to plantations of sugar- 
cane,* and of Indian corn. While the ear of the Indian 
corn is still young, soft and tender, or “in the milk,” it 
is very sweet, and is then eagerly sought by the Raccoons; 
troops of them frequently enter fields of maize, and in one 
night commit extensive depredations, both by the quan- 
tity of grain they consume, and from the number of stalks 
they break down by their weight. 
The Raccoon is an excellent climber, and his strong 
sharp claws effectually secure him from being shaken off 
the branches of trees. In fact, so tenaciously does this 
animal hold to any surface upon which it can make an 
impression with its claws, that it requires a considerable 
exertion of a man’s strength to drag him off; and as long 
as even a single foot remains attached, he continues to 
cling with great force. I have had frequent occasion to 
pull a Raccoon from the top of a board-fence, where there 
was no projection which he could seize by; yet, such was 
the power and obstinacy with which the points of his claws 
were stuck into the board, as repeatedly to oblige me to 
desist for fear of tearing his skin, or otherwise doing him 
injury by the violence necessary to detach his hold. 
The conical form of the head, and the very pointed and 
flexible character of the muzzle or snout, are of great im- 
portance in aiding the Raccoon to examine every vacuity 
and crevice to which he gains access, nor does he neglect 
any opportunity of his natural advantages, but explores 
every nook and cranny, with the most persevering dili- 
gence and attention, greedily feeding on spiders, worms, 
or other insects which are discovered by the scrutiny. 
Where the opening is too small to give admittance to his 
nose, he employs his fore-paws, and shifts his position, or 
turns his paws sidewise, in order to facilitate their intro- 
duction and effect his purpose. This disposition to feed 
on the grubs or larvae of insects must render this animal 
of considerable utility in forest lands, in consequence of 
* Sir Hans Sloane ; Natural History of Jamaica. 
