Is the Raccoon a Protected Animal? Let's Learn About Its Protection Level
A raccoon has a ring of dark fur around its eyes. It is relatively small in size and looks endearingly innocent, which has made it popular with many people. So is the raccoon a protected animal?
1. Is the raccoon a protected animal?
The raccoon is a protected animal, listed in the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2012 ver 3.1—Least Concern. It is also listed in the List of Wild Animals or Their Products under International Conventions Concluded or Participated in by the People's Republic of China Whose Trade Is Prohibited or Restricted—List I, Procyonidae.
2. Characteristics of the raccoon
The raccoon's most distinctive feature is the black area around its eyes, commonly known as the “black eye mask”, which forms a sharp contrast with the surrounding white facial fur. The ears are slightly rounded, with white fur on top, and the coat is usually yellowish-brown of varying shades, though some are brown and black, pale yellow, and rarely albino varieties. In winter, the fur grows to 2-3cm. The front and hind feet have five toes each, and the toes are often split, able to grasp things. The teeth were originally carnassial teeth and evolved into teeth capable of crushing things.
The raccoon has a long tail with black-and-white ring markings, and a few have alternating yellow and white rings, about 5-7 of them. Both the arboreal ringtail raccoon genus and the terrestrial coati have tail rings, while the long tail of the kinkajou (exceeding 1.5-2.0 times the body length) has no rings; the long tail of the former is prehensile.
The raccoon's body length is 40 to 70cm, tail length 20 to 40cm, and shoulder height 23-30cm. The weight of an adult raccoon varies greatly depending on habitat, ranging from 2 to 14 kilograms, but is usually between 3.5 and 9 kilograms. Very small raccoons have been found in southern Florida, while raccoons in the north are larger. At the beginning of winter, a raccoon's weight can become 2 times its spring weight due to fat storage.
The raccoon has a relatively cute appearance and likes to live in forests near rivers and lakes. Raccoons can often be seen in zoos or on television, but they are protected animals, so if you encounter a raccoon in difficulty, please help them.