Procyonidae

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Procyonidae

Procyonidae is a New World family

Family (biology)

In biological classification, family is a taxonomic rank. Exact details of formal nomenclature depend on the Nomenclature Codes which applies....
of the order

Order (biology)

In Biological classification used in biology, the order is a taxonomic rank between class and family . The superorder is a rank between class and order....
Carnivora

Carnivora

The diverse Order Carnivora includes over 260 species of eutheria mammals. Its members are formally referred to as carnivorans, while the word "carnivore" can refer to any meat-eating animal....
. It includes the raccoons, coati

Coati

The coati, genera Nasua and Nasuella, also known as the hog-nosed coon, snookum bear, and the Brazilian Aardvark, is a member of the raccoon family ; a diurnal mammal native to South America, Central America, and south-western North America....
s, kinkajou

Kinkajou

The kinkajou , also known as the honey bear, is a rainforest mammal of the family Procyonidae related to the olingo, Ring-tailed Cat, cacomistle, raccoon, and coati....
s, olingo

Olingo

Olingos are small procyonidae that comprise the genus Bassaricyon, native to the rainforests of Central America and South America from Nicaragua to Peru....
s, ringtails and cacomistle

Cacomistle

The Cacomistle is a nocturnal, arboreal and omnivore member of the carnivoran family procyonidae. Its preferred habitats are wet, tropical evergreen woodlands and mountain forests, though seasonally it will range into drier deciduous forests....
s. Procyonids inhabit a wide range of environments, and are generally omnivorous

Omnivore

Omnivores are species that eating both plants and animals as their primary food source. They are opportunistic, general feeders not specifically adapted to eat and digest either meat or plant material exclusively....
.

yonids are smallish animals, with generally slender bodies and long tails. (The common raccoon tends to be bulky.) Except for the kinkajou, all procyonids have banded tails, and distinct facial markings.

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Characteristics

Procyonids are smallish animals, with generally slender bodies and long tails. (The common raccoon tends to be bulky.) Except for the kinkajou, all procyonids have banded tails, and distinct facial markings. These are especially visible in the raccoons. Like bears, procyonids are plantigrade

Plantigrade

In mammals, plantigrade locomotion means walking with the podials and metatarsals flat on the ground.Primates are examples of plantigrade species; in humans, the podials and metatarsals constitute the sole of the foot....
, walking on the soles of their feet. Most species have non-retractile claws.

Because of their omnivorous diet, procyonids have lost some of the adaptations for flesh-eating found in their carnivorous relatives. While they do have carnassial

Carnassial

Carnassials are large teeth found in many carnivorous mammals, used for shearing flesh and bone in a scissor or shear-like way. In the Carnivora, the carnassials are the modified last upper premolar and the first lower molar , but in the prehistoric creodonts, the carnassials were further back in the jaw — first upper and second lower o...
teeth, these are poorly developed in most species, especially the raccoons. Apart from the kinkajou, procyonids have the dental formula

Dentition

Dentition is the tooth development of teeth and their arrangement in the mouth.All mammals except the monotremes, the xenarthrans, the pangolins, and the cetaceans have up to four distinct types of teeth, with a maximum number for each....
:

While coatis are diurnal

Diurnal

Diurnal may refer to:* Diurnality, the behavior of an animal that is active in the daytime* Diurnal motion, the apparent motion of stars around the Earth...
, all other procyonids are nocturnal. They are mostly solitary animals, and the mother raises litters of up to four young on her own.

Evolution

Fossils belonging to the genus Bassariscus

Bassariscus

Bassariscus is a genus of the Procyonidae scientific classification and Procyoninae scientific classification. There are two species in the genus: the ringtail or ring-tailed Cat and the cacomistle ....
, which includes the modern ringtail and cacomistle, have been identified from the Miocene

Miocene

The Miocene is a Geologic time scale of the Neogene period and extends from about 23.03 to 5.33 million years before the present. As with other older geologic periods, the rock beds that define the start and end are well identified but the exact dates of the start and end of the period are uncertain....
epoch, around 20 million years ago. It has been suggested that early procyonids were an offshoot of the canids

Canidae

Canidae is the family of the dogs; a member of this family is called a canid. They include wolf, foxes, coyotes, and jackals. The Canidae family is divided into the "true dogs" of the tribe Canini and the "foxes" of the tribe Vulpini....
that adapted to a more omnivorous diet.

Classification

Recent genetic studies have shown that the kinkajous were an early offshoot of the ancestral procyonid line and are not closely related to any of the other extant genera; coatis and olingos are closest relatives, while the closest relatives of the raccoons are the ringtails and cacomistles. These data are not yet reflected in the classification scheme, which groups kinkajous and olingos together on the basis of similarities in morphology

Morphology (biology)

The term morphology in biology refers to form, structure and configuration of an organism. This includes aspects of the outward appearance as well as the form and structure of the internal parts like bones and organs....
which are now known to be an example of parallel evolution

Parallel evolution

Parallel evolution is the independent evolution of similar traits, starting from a similar ancestral condition due to similar environments or other evolutionary pressures....
.

There is considerable uncertainty over the correct classification of several members. The Red Panda

Red Panda

The Red Panda, also called the Firefox or Lesser Panda , is a mostly herbivorous mammal, specialized as a bamboo feeder. It is slightly larger than a domestic cat ....
was previously classified in this family, but some experts, including Don E. Wilson and DeeAnn M. Reeder, classify it as a member of the bear family (Ursidae) or in its own family the Ailuridae

Ailuridae

Ailuridae is a family in the mammal order Carnivora. The family includes the Red Panda and its extinct relatives....
. The status of the various olingo

Olingo

Olingos are small procyonidae that comprise the genus Bassaricyon, native to the rainforests of Central America and South America from Nicaragua to Peru....
s is disputed: they may all be better regarded as subspecies

Subspecies

In biology, subspecies is the taxonomic rank immediately subordinate to a species. A subspecies is a taxonomic group which is less distinct than the Common descent or species from which it originates....
of Bassaricyon gabbii.

Because of their general build, the Procyonidae

Procyonidae

Procyonidae is a New World family of the order Carnivora. It includes the Procyon s, coatis, kinkajous, olingos, Ring-tailed_Cats and cacomistles....
are often viewed as smaller cousins of the bear family. This is apparent in their German names: a raccoon is called a Waschbär (washing bear, as he "washes" his food before eating), a coati is a Nasenbär (nose-bear) while a Kinkajou

Kinkajou

The kinkajou , also known as the honey bear, is a rainforest mammal of the family Procyonidae related to the olingo, Ring-tailed Cat, cacomistle, raccoon, and coati....
is a Honigbär (honey-bear). Dutch follows suit, calling the animals wasbeer, neusbeer and rolstaartbeer respectively.

FAMILY PROCYONIDAE

Subfamily Procyoninae (9 species in 4 genera)

Raccoons, Procyon

Crab-eating Raccoon
Crab-eating raccoon

The Crab-eating Raccoon is a species of Procyon native to marshy and jungle areas of Central America and South America .The Crab-eating Raccoon eats crab, lobster, and other crustaceans, but is an omnivore and its diet also includes, for example, small amphibians, turtle eggs, and fruits....
, Procyon cancrivorus
Cozumel Raccoon
Cozumel Raccoon

The Cozumel Raccoon , also called Pygmy Raccoon, is a critically endangered species of Procyon Endemism on Cozumel off the coast of the Yucatan Peninsula, Mexico....
, Procyon pygmaeus
Common Raccoon, Procyon lotor

Coati
Coati

The coati, genera Nasua and Nasuella, also known as the hog-nosed coon, snookum bear, and the Brazilian Aardvark, is a member of the raccoon family ; a diurnal mammal native to South America, Central America, and south-western North America....
s, Nasua

South American Coati
South American Coati

The South American Coati, or Ring-tailed Coati , is a species of coati from South America. It is native to Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, Guyana, Paraguay, Peru, Surinam, Uruguay and Venezuela....
or Ring-tailed Coati, Nasua nasua
White-nosed Coati, Nasua narica
Cozumel Island Coati
Cozumel Island Coati

The Cozumel Island Coati is a coati from the Mexico island of Cozumel. It is in the family Procyonidae, which also includes raccoons, olingos, and Kinkajous....
, Nasua nelsoni

Mountain Coatis, Nasuella

Mountain Coati
Mountain Coati

The Mountain Coati or Dwarf coati is a small Procyonidae, the only member of the genus Nasuella, found in Colombia, Ecuador and Venezuela. It is not a true coati, but a considerably smaller and rarer animal....
, Nasuella olivacea

Ringtails and Cacomistles, Bassariscus
Bassariscus

Bassariscus is a genus of the Procyonidae scientific classification and Procyoninae scientific classification. There are two species in the genus: the ringtail or ring-tailed Cat and the cacomistle ....

Ringtail, Bassariscus astutus
Cacomistle
Cacomistle

The Cacomistle is a nocturnal, arboreal and omnivore member of the carnivoran family procyonidae. Its preferred habitats are wet, tropical evergreen woodlands and mountain forests, though seasonally it will range into drier deciduous forests....
, Bassariscus sumichrasti

Subfamily Potosinae (6 species in 2 genera)

Kinkajous, Potos

Kinkajou
Kinkajou

The kinkajou , also known as the honey bear, is a rainforest mammal of the family Procyonidae related to the olingo, Ring-tailed Cat, cacomistle, raccoon, and coati....
, Potos flavus

Olingo
Olingo

Olingos are small procyonidae that comprise the genus Bassaricyon, native to the rainforests of Central America and South America from Nicaragua to Peru....
s, Bassaricyon

Olingo, Bushy-tailed Olingo
Bushy-tailed Olingo

The Bushy-tailed Olingo , or Gabbi's Olingo or simply Olingo, was the first species of olingo to be discovered. Like other olingos, it is found in Central America and South America....
or Gabbi's Olingo, Bassaricyon gabbii
Allen's Olingo
Allen's Olingo

Allen's Olingo is a species of olingo found in South America.Notes...
, Bassaricyon alleni
Beddard's Olingo
Beddard's Olingo

The Beddard's Olingo, Bassaricyon beddardi, is an olingo species from South America. It is found in Brazil, Guyana and Venezuela. Olingos are similar to the kinkajou ; however, they lack a prehensile tail, and are not closely related....
, Bassaricyon beddardi
Harris's Olingo
Harris's Olingo

Harris's Olingo is a species of olingo found in Central America. Because of ongoing taxonomic uncertainty this species is considered to be data deficient....
, Bassaricyon lasius
Chiriqui Olingo
Chiriqui Olingo

The Chiriqui Olingo is a species of olingo found in Central America. Its range is limited to Chiriqui Province in western Panama....
, Bassaricyon pauli