Critically Endangered
Cozumel raccoon
Procyon pygmaeus
The Cozumel raccoon is a critically endangered species of island raccoon endemic on Cozumel Island off the coast of the Yucatan Peninsula, Mexico.
Appearance
Merriam described the Cozumel raccoon as being markedly smaller, both externally and cranially and easy to distinguish from the common raccoon because of its "broad black throat band and golden yellow tail, short posteriorly expanded and rounded nasals and peculiarities of the teeth". Apart from its smaller size and more rounded snout, the Cozumel raccoon is similar in appearance to the common raccoon. The fur over the upper body is buff-grey ticked with occasional black hairs, while the underparts and legs are pale buff in color.
Adults range from 58 to 82 centimeters (23 to 32 in) in total length, among them the 23 to 26 centimeters (9.1 to 10.2 in) tail, and weigh between 3 and 4 kilograms (6.6 and 8.8 lb).
Range and habitat
The Cozumel raccoon is endemic to Cozumel Island, an island around 478 square kilometers (185 sq mi) in area, lying off the east coast of the Yucatan Peninsula in Mexico. It is one of two raccoon species in Mexico, the other being the common raccoon (Procyon lotor), and is the only raccoon species present on Cozumel Island. Cozumel Island supports several other carnivores, among them the dwarf coati (Nasua narica nelsoni) and dwarf gray fox (Urocyon sp.).
The Cozumel raccoon is a critically endangered species of island raccoon endemic on Cozumel Island off the coast of the Yucatan Peninsula, Mexico. It is sometimes also called the pygmy raccoon, dwarf raccoon, Cozumel Island raccoon, and Cozumel raccoon bear.
Pins are Wikidata “endemic to” fields. Orange dots, when present, are GBIF occurrence tiles — survey bias included.
Diet
Crabs make up between 44% and 50% of the Cozumel raccoon's diet, with Cardisoma guanhumi and Coenobita clypeatus being the most frequently consumed. Seasonal variations influence diet composition.
In crisis
According to the IUCN Red List, this pygmy raccoons are critically endangered. As of the 2016 IUCN assessment, it was determined that the Cozumel raccoon population is in continuous decline and was estimated there are only around 192 mature individuals left in the world. In Mexico, pygmy raccoons are listed as En Peligro de Extinción (Threatened with Extinction) by SEMARNAT and are protected by law.
The pygmy raccoon's small geographic range contributes to its risk of extinction. Island carnivores at the top of the food chain often become extinct soon after the arrival of humans.
Cozumel raccoon is Critically Endangered on this catalog because that is the IUCN category stored on Wikidata. Confirm the official criteria and any later count on iucnredlist.org.
Sources
Written for this catalog from the English Wikipedia article on Cozumel raccoon, Wikidata item Q651814. Family and order context is original field-guide writing about the group, not a copied assessment of this one species. Wikipedia text is CC BY-SA. Not an IUCN assessment. Counts, when quoted, can change — confirm them on the recovery programme and on iucnredlist.org.
