A raccoon is a clever mammal with a black mask and a bushy tail ringed with 5 to 10 black bands. There are seven species. Raccoons live across North America and into South America, are active at night, and eat almost anything, from crayfish and frogs to fruit and scraps. Their sensitive, hand-like paws can open jars and latches.
raccoons quick facts
- There are seven species of raccoon.
- A raccoon’s tail has 5 to 10 black rings.
- Raccoons do not really wash their food; they feel it with their paws.
- Baby raccoons are called kits or cubs.
- Raccoons can live up to 16 years, but most live under two.
What is a raccoon?
A raccoon is a clever, furry mammal with a black mask across its eyes and a bushy, ringed tail. Britannica says there are seven species of raccoon.
The best known is the North American raccoon, which lives from Canada through most of the United States and into Central and South America.
Raccoons are famous for their nimble, hand-like paws, their curiosity and their habit of raiding bins. They are mostly active at night.
| Raccoon at a glance | |
|---|---|
| Kinds | seven species |
| Length | 75 to 90 cm (30 to 36 inches), including the tail |
| Weight | usually 6 to 10 kg; big males over 20 kg |
| Food | crayfish, frogs, insects, rodents, fruit, nuts and scraps |
| Active | mostly at night |
| Babies | one to six kits, usually three or four |
| Lifespan | up to 16 years in the wild, though most live under two |
What does a raccoon look like?
A raccoon has a stout body, short legs, a pointed nose and small, upright ears. Its thick fur is grey to blackish with brown tones.
Its most famous features are the black mask across its eyes and its bushy tail. Britannica says the tail has 5 to 10 black rings.
Britannica says the North American raccoon is 75 to 90 cm (30 to 36 inches) long, including a 25 cm (10 inch) tail. Animal Diversity Web says most weigh 6 to 7 kg, though some large males reach more than 20 kg.
Raccoons living in the far north are bigger than those in the south, which helps them stay warm in cold winters.
Clever hands
A raccoon’s front paws look a lot like slender human hands. Each has five long, clawed fingers and no fur on the underside.
Animal Diversity Web says these paws are especially sensitive, and they let a raccoon handle food and pry open shells. A raccoon can open jars, undo latches and turn door handles.
Raccoons often feel for food underwater with their paws, finding crayfish and frogs by touch alone.
Do raccoons wash their food?
The raccoon’s scientific name, Procyon lotor, includes the Latin word lotor, which means “the washer”. Raccoons seem to wash their food in water before eating it.
But Britannica says this is a mistake. Raccoons often look for food in or near water, and they handle and rub it with their paws while eating. That makes it look like washing, but they are really feeling their food.
Kinds of raccoon
North American raccoon: the common raccoon that lives in forests, farms and cities across North America.
Crab-eating raccoon: a raccoon of Central and South America with shorter fur, often found near swamps and rivers, where it hunts crabs and other water animals.
Cozumel raccoon: a small raccoon that lives only on the island of Cozumel, off the coast of Mexico. Because it lives in such a small area, it is rare.
Where do raccoons live?
Animal Diversity Web says raccoons live across southern Canada, most of the United States and into northern South America. They have also been brought to parts of Europe and Asia.
They like damp woodlands close to water, but they also live on farms, in marshes and swamps, and in towns and cities.
Britannica says raccoons are most often found near water, and they adapt extremely well to living near people.
Raccoon dens
Animal Diversity Web says raccoons like to make their dens in hollow trees, but they also use old burrows dug by other animals, caves, and even barns, garages and empty buildings.
In towns, raccoons often move into attics, chimneys and crawl spaces, especially in late winter and spring when mothers are looking for safe places to raise their young.
Raccoons are good climbers. When they feel threatened, they often scramble up the nearest tree.
What do raccoons eat?
Raccoons are omnivores, which means they eat both plants and animals. Britannica says they feed on crayfish and other small animals, rodents, frogs, fruit, plants and crops.
Animal Diversity Web adds insects, fish, nuts and birds’ eggs to the list. In towns, raccoons also eat rubbish, pet food and anything else they can find.
Humane World for Animals says raccoons are drawn to bins, vegetable gardens and bird feeders, and they dig in lawns for earthworms and grubs.
Night-time animals
Animal Diversity Web says raccoons are nocturnal, which means they are active at night and rarely during the day.
Humane World for Animals notes that seeing a raccoon out in the daytime does not mean it is ill. A mother may be out finding extra food for her young.
Baby raccoons
Baby raccoons are called kits or cubs. Britannica says a mother has one to six young, usually three or four, born in late spring after a pregnancy of 60 to 73 days.
Animal Diversity Web says the babies are born blind and helpless. Their eyes open at 18 to 24 days, and they stop drinking milk at about 70 days.
The young stay with their mother through their first winter, learning where to find food and how to climb.
How long do raccoons live?
Animal Diversity Web says raccoons can live up to 16 years in the wild, but most do not survive past their second year.
Coyotes, wolves, large hawks and owls hunt raccoons, and snakes may take the young. Find out which birds prey on them in our guide to what owls eat, or meet one of their predators in our gray wolf facts. Snakes such as the rattlesnake sometimes catch young raccoons.
Clever and curious
Raccoons are known for being intelligent and curious. Britannica describes the North American raccoon as an intelligent and inquisitive animal.
They remember where they found food, and they can solve simple puzzles to get at it. That is why they are so good at getting into bins.
Raccoons and our health
Raccoons can carry diseases. Animal Diversity Web says they can carry rabies and other diseases and parasites that can spread to people and pets.
Humane World for Animals says a roundworm found in raccoon droppings can infect people and pets. Never touch a wild raccoon or its droppings, and always wash your hands after playing outside.
Living with raccoons
Humane World for Animals recommends keeping raccoons away with gentle methods, such as bins with tight lids, not leaving pet food outside, and blocking gaps into attics and sheds.
Raccoons are wild animals, not pets. If you see one, enjoy watching it from a distance.
Fast, tough climbers
Raccoons are tougher than they look. Animal Diversity Web says they can run at about 24 km/h (15 mph) on the ground and climb with great agility.
They can even survive a fall of 10 to 12 m (35 to 40 feet). That is about as high as a four-storey building.
Each night, a raccoon travels about 0.75 to 2.5 km looking for food. Animal Diversity Web says males have home ranges of about 65 hectares on average, and females about 39 hectares.
What raccoons do in winter
Raccoons do not hibernate. But Animal Diversity Web says that in harsh winter weather, they sleep for long periods in their dens and live off the fat stored in their bodies.
By the end of a long, cold winter, a raccoon may have lost as much as half of its body weight. That is why raccoons eat so much in autumn, building up fat for the winter ahead.
A raccoon’s year
Animal Diversity Web says raccoons mate between February and June, mostly in March. The mother is pregnant for about 63 to 65 days and usually has about four kits.
The kits are born blind and helpless. Their eyes open when they are 18 to 24 days old, and they stop drinking milk at about 70 days old. They stay with their mother until the following spring.
Most raccoons do not live past their second year. Animal Diversity Web says one raccoon in captivity lived to 21 years old.
Raccoons on the farm
Raccoons do not only raid rubbish bins. Animal Diversity Web says they can damage orchards, vineyards, melon patches, cornfields, peanut fields and chicken yards.
Farmers sometimes find ripe corn pulled from the stalks or eggs taken from hen houses. Raccoons are clever at finding food, so keeping them out takes strong fences and secure buildings.
Three things people get wrong
Raccoons do not really wash their food. They are feeling it with their sensitive paws.
A raccoon out in the day is not always ill. Mothers sometimes look for food in daylight.
Not all raccoons live in North America. Some kinds live in Central and South America.
Did you know? The raccoon’s scientific name, Procyon lotor, means “the washer”, even though raccoons do not really wash their food.
Try it
Close your eyes and try to identify small objects in a bowl of water by touch alone. Raccoons find crayfish and frogs this way.
Knowledge check
Do raccoons really wash their food?
Show answer
No, they are feeling and handling it with their sensitive paws.
When are raccoons most active?
Show answer
At night.
Frequently asked questions
What do raccoons eat?
Raccoons are omnivores. They eat crayfish, frogs, insects, fish, rodents, birds’ eggs, fruit, nuts and crops, and in towns they raid bins and pet food.
Where do raccoons live?
Raccoons live across southern Canada, most of the United States and into South America, in woodlands, marshes, farms and cities, usually near water.
Do raccoons really wash their food?
No. Britannica says raccoons often search for food in water and handle it with their paws while eating, which makes it look like washing.
What is a baby raccoon called?
A baby raccoon is called a kit or a cub. A mother has one to six young, usually three or four, born in late spring.
How long do raccoons live?
Raccoons can live up to 16 years in the wild, according to Animal Diversity Web, but most do not survive past their second year.
Are raccoons dangerous?
Raccoons can carry diseases such as rabies and roundworm. Never touch a wild raccoon or its droppings, and keep bins and pet food secure.
Sources
- Encyclopaedia Britannica: raccoon — species, range, size, mask and tail, paws, diet, the washing myth, babies, habitats and intelligence
- Animal Diversity Web, University of Michigan: common raccoon — range, habitats, weight, sensitive paws, diet, nocturnal habits, dens, young, lifespan, predators and disease
- Humane World for Animals: what to do about raccoons — where they live, dens, diet, daytime activity, diseases and living with raccoons
