Coatimundi
| South American Coati [1] | ||||||||||||||
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| File:Coati2.jpg | ||||||||||||||
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| Nasua nasua (Linnaeus, 1766) |
The South American Coati, or Ring-tailed Coati (Nasua nasua), is a species of coati from South America. It is native to Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Guyana, Paraguay, Peru, Surinam, Uruguay and Venezuela.[1]
Behavior
South American Coatis are diurnal animals, and they live both on the ground and in trees.[3] They typically live in the forest.[4] They are omnivorous and primarily eat fruit, invertebrates, other small animals and bird's eggs.[3] Coatis search for fruit in trees high in the canopy, and use their snouts to poke through crevices to find animal prey on the ground.[3] They also search for animal prey by turning over rocks on the ground or ripping open logs with their claws.[3]
Females generally live in large groups, called bands, consisting of 15 to 30 animals.[3][4] Males, on the other hand, are usually solitary.[4] Solitary males were originally considered a separate species due to the different social habits and were called "coatimundis"[4], a term still sometimes used today. Neither bands of females nor solitary males defend a unique territory, and territories therefore overlap.[4]
Group members produce soft whining sounds, but alarm calls are different, consisting of loud woofs and clicks.[3] When an alarm call is sounded, the coatis typically climb trees, and then drop down to the ground and disperse.[3] Coatis typically sleep in the trees.[3] Predators of the South American Coati include foxes, jaguars, jaguarundis, domestic dogs, and people.[5]
Reproduction
All females in a group come into heat simultaneously when fruit is in season.[4] Females mate with multiple males.[4] Gestation period is 77 days.[4] Females give birth to 2-4 young at a time, which are raised in a nest in the trees for 4-6 weeks.[3][4] Females leave the group during this time.[3][4] Females tend to remain with the group they were born in but males generally disperse from their mothers' group after 3 years.[4]
Other
South American Coatis generally live for up to 7 years in the wild, but can live up to 14 years in captivity.[4]
Subspecies
The South American Coati has 13 receognized subspecies[1]:
- Nasua nasua nasua
- Nasua nasua aricana
- Nasua nasua boliviensis
- Nasua nasua candace
- Nasua nasua cinerascens
- Nasua nasua dorsalis
- Nasua nasua manium
- Nasua nasua molaris
- Nasua nasua montana
- Nasua nasua quichua
- Nasua nasua solitaria
- Nasua nasua spadicea
- Nasua nasua vittata
ReferencesISBN links support NWE through referral fees
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Mammal Species of the World, 3rd edition. Retrieved 2007-07-13.
- ↑ Duckworth, J.W. & Schipper, J. (2008). Nasua nasua. In: IUCN 2008. IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Downloaded on 9 October 2008.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 3.5 3.6 3.7 3.8 3.9 Emmons, Louise (1997). Neotropical Rainforest Mammals, A Field Guide, 2nd Edition, 153–154. ISBN 0-226-20721-8.
- ↑ 4.00 4.01 4.02 4.03 4.04 4.05 4.06 4.07 4.08 4.09 4.10 4.11 BBC Ring-tailed Coati. Retrieved 2007-07-13.
- ↑ Southern Coati. Retrieved 2007-07-13.
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