ThatWe cook the food following washing it. Fruits, vegetables, fish and meat products can be cleaned in this way. But do you know an animal that only eats following washing its food? That is the mammal raccoon. The scientific name of this furry friend is Bocyonida. Raccoons are found in abundance in a region that stretches from southern Canada to Panama.
Raccoons like to live in areas where water and trees are readily available, and will go out at night to hunt for prey. These people who like to eat crabs and frogs will catch them and wash them before eating them. But no one has a clue why this is. However, raccoons do not wash their prey to clean it. Because they also wash their prey in muddy water. Researchers say that these are washed to make the food more palatable.
Raccoons are usually gray in color. Some have a gray color mixed with yellow and brown. A raccoon’s tail is regarding 25 cm long. Four to six yellow bands can be seen on the dark brown tail. They have strong and sharp claws that forage with their palms. The eyes are surrounded by black markings.
Raccoons are mainly classified into two. Those found in Canada and the USA are called northern raccoons, and those found in South America are called crab-eating raccoons. Northern raccoons are 76 to 97 cm long, including the tail. It can be up to 10 kg in length and up to 10 kg in weight. Crab-eating raccoons have shorter fur and larger feet than northern raccoons.