The Cozumel coati (''Nasua narica nelsoni''), or Cozumel Island coati, is a

coati Coatis, also known as coatimundis (), are members of the family Procyonidae in the genera ''Nasua'' and ''Nasuella''. They are diurnal mammals native to South America, Central America, Mexico, and the southwestern United States. The name ...

from the Mexican island of

Cozumel Cozumel (; yua, Kùutsmil) is an island and municipality in the Caribbean Sea off the eastern coast of Mexico's Yucatán Peninsula, opposite Playa del Carmen. It is separated from the mainland by the Cozumel Channel and is close to the Yucat� ...

, in the

Caribbean Sea The Caribbean Sea ( es, Mar Caribe; french: Mer des Caraïbes; ht, Lanmè Karayib; jam, Kiaribiyan Sii; nl, Caraïbische Zee; pap, Laman Karibe) is a sea of the Atlantic Ocean in the tropics of the Western Hemisphere. It is bounded by Mexico ...

. It is in the family Procyonidae, which also includes

raccoon The raccoon ( or , ''Procyon lotor''), sometimes called the common raccoon to distinguish it from other species, is a mammal native to North America. It is the largest of the procyonid family, having a body length of , and a body weight of ...

s, olingos, and

kinkajou The kinkajou ( /ˈkɪŋkədʒuː/ ''KING-kə-joo''; ''Potos flavus'') is a tropical rainforest mammal of the family Procyonidae related to olingos, coatis, raccoons, and the ringtail and cacomistle. It is the only member of the genus ''Potos'' ...

Cozumel Island Coati Family at Fury Beach, Mexico

Taxonomy

It has been treated as a species, but the vast majority of recent authorities treat it as a subspecies of the

white-nosed coati The white-nosed coati (''Nasua narica''), also known as the coatimundi (), is a species of coati and a member of the family Procyonidae (raccoons and their relatives). Local Spanish names for the species include ''pizote'', ''antoon'', and ''te ...

.Kays, R. (2009). White-nosed Coati (Nasua narica), pp. 527-528 in: Wilson, D. E., and R. A. Mittermeier, eds. (2009). ''

Handbook of the Mammals of the World ''Handbook of the Mammals of the World'' (''HMW'') is a book series from the publisher Lynx Edicions. The nine volumes were published from 2009 to 2019. Each mammal family is assessed in a full text introduction with photographs and each species h ...

.'' Vol. 1, Carnivores. Cozumel Island coatis are slightly smaller than the white-nosed coatis of the adjacent mainland (''N. n. yucatanica''); but, when compared more widely to white-nosed coatis, the difference in size is not as clear.Decker, D. M. (1991).
Systematics Of The Coatis, Genus Nasua (Mammalia, Procyonidae)
.'' Proceedings of the Biological Society of Washington 104: 370-386 The level of other differences also support its status as a subspecies rather than a separate species. It has been speculated that it is the result of an ancient

introduction Introduction, The Introduction, Intro, or The Intro may refer to: General use * Introduction (music), an opening section of a piece of music * Introduction (writing), a beginning section to a book, article or essay which states its purpose and g ...

to Cozumel by the

Mayans The Maya peoples () are an ethnolinguistic group of indigenous peoples of Mesoamerica. The ancient Maya civilization was formed by members of this group, and today's Maya are generally descended from people who lived within that historical reg ...

. Although not rated by the IUCN (where included in the widespread white-nosed coati), it is believed that the Cozumel Island coati is highly threatened and close to

extinction Extinction is the termination of a kind of organism or of a group of kinds (taxon), usually a species. The moment of extinction is generally considered to be the death of the last individual of the species, although the capacity to breed and ...

Gallery

Cozumel Island Coati Family.jpg, Cozumel coati family at Fury Beach. Mexico Cozumel Island Coati .jpg, Specimen on beach

References

External links

* Procyonidae Coati, Cozumel Coati, Cozumel Coati, Cozumel Coati, Cozumel Coati, Cozumel Taxa named by Clinton Hart Merriam Mammals described in 1901 {{Carnivora-stub