The Tres Marias raccoon (''Procyon lotor insularis'') is a subspecies of the

common 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 . ...

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found else ...

on the two main islands of the

Islas Marías The Islas Marías ("Mary Islands") are an archipelago of four islands that belong to Mexico. They are located in the Pacific Ocean, some off the coast of the state of Nayarit and about southeast of the tip of Baja California. They are part of t ...

, an archipelago off the western coast of the Mexican state of

Nayarit Nayarit (), officially the Free and Sovereign State of Nayarit ( es, Estado Libre y Soberano de Nayarit), is one of the 31 states that, along with Mexico City, comprise the Federal Entities of Mexico. It is divided in 20 municipalities and its ...

. Although sometimes considered to be a valid species, the Tres Marias raccoon is now regarded to be a subspecies of the common raccoon, introduced to the Islas Marías in the recent past. It is slightly larger than the common raccoon and has a distinctive angular skull. There are fewer than 250 mature individuals on the islands, they are hunted by the islanders and the

International Union for Conservation of Nature The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN; officially International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources) is an international organization working in the field of nature conservation and sustainable use of nat ...

has rated their conservation status as being "

endangered An endangered species is a species that is very likely to become extinct in the near future, either worldwide or in a particular political jurisdiction. Endangered species may be at risk due to factors such as habitat loss, poaching and in ...

Classification

In its initial description in 1898, the Tres Marias raccoon was classified as a subspecies of the

(''Procyon lotor'') by

Clinton Hart Merriam Clinton Hart Merriam (December 5, 1855 – March 19, 1942) was an American zoologist, mammalogist, ornithologist, entomologist, ecologist, ethnographer, geographer, naturalist and physician. He was commonly known as the 'father of mammalogy', a ...

. (This source was used for the whole chapter about classification.) In 1950,

Edward Alphonso Goldman Edward Alphonso Goldman (July 7, 1873 – September 2, 1946) was an American zoologist and botanist. He worked extensively in Mexico with Edward William Nelson and described and revised many groups of mammals. He was born Edward Alphonso Goltman i ...

identified it as a distinct species, a view that has been upheld by most scientists until recently. In a study of a pair of mounted specimens in 2005, Kristofer M. Helgen and Don E. Wilson came to the conclusion that there are morphological differences between the Tres Marias raccoon and the subspecies ''Procyon lotor hernandezii'' of the common raccoon found on the Mexican mainland, but that they are not large enough to justify the classification as distinct species. It is therefore assumed that the Tres Marias raccoon was introduced to the

not long ago. Subsequently, the Tres Marias raccoon was listed as a subspecies of the common raccoon in the third edition of

Mammal Species of the World ''Mammal Species of the World: A Taxonomic and Geographic Reference'' is a standard reference work in mammalogy giving descriptions and bibliographic data for the known species of mammals. It is now in its third edition, published in late 2005, ...

by Wilson and DeeAnn M. Reeder published in 2005.

Description

The average body length of five adult males, including the

tail The tail is the section at the rear end of certain kinds of animals’ bodies; in general, the term refers to a distinct, flexible appendage to the torso. It is the part of the body that corresponds roughly to the sacrum and coccyx in mammal ...

, was stated as by

Edward William Nelson Edward William Nelson (May 8, 1855 – May 19, 1934) was an American naturalist and ethnologist. A collector of specimens and field naturalist of repute, he became a member of several expeditions to survey the fauna and flora. He was part o ...

in 1898. Three mounted specimens, which were between long, were measured in 2005. Samuel I. Zeveloff calls the Tres Marias raccoon large compared to an average sized common raccoon, so that it is not an example of

insular dwarfism Insular dwarfism, a form of phyletic dwarfism, is the process and condition of large animals evolving or having a reduced body size when their population's range is limited to a small environment, primarily islands. This natural process is disti ...

. The coat of the Tres Marias raccoon is pale and short and on its underparts only a few

guard hair Guard hair or overhair is the outer layer of hair of most mammals, which overlay the fur. Guard hairs are long and coarse and protect the rest of the pelage (fur) from abrasion and frequently from moisture. They are visible on the surface of the fu ...

s cover the light brown ground hairs. The most distinctive feature compared to other subspecies is its angular skull. Another feature different from that of the Northern raccoon is that it has narrow molars.

Conservation

In 1996, the Tres Marias raccoon was classified as

by the IUCN since less than 250 mature individuals were living in the wild. The subspecies ''Procyon insularis vicinus'' endemic on María Magdalena is assumed to be extinct. Since only two mounted specimens exist in museums, it will probably never be known whether it is taxonomically distinct from the subspecies endemic on María Madre. The Tres Marias raccoon is hunted by the islanders and no

conservation Conservation is the preservation or efficient use of resources, or the conservation of various quantities under physical laws. Conservation may also refer to: Environment and natural resources * Nature conservation, the protection and managem ...

efforts have been made to protect the species from

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 ...

. Considering its small range, the Tres Marias raccoon was most likely never numerous, like the four other

island raccoon The term island raccoons is used as a generic term for four endangered and one (or two) extinct subspecies or species of raccoon (''Procyon'') endemic on small Mexican and Caribbean islands, such as Cozumel and Guadeloupe. Other subspecies of racc ...

s ( Cozumel raccoon,

Bahamian raccoon The Bahamian raccoon (''Procyon lotor maynardi''), also called Bahama raccoon or Bahamas raccoon, is a subspecies of the common raccoon endemic on the New Providence Island in the Bahamas. The binomial name, ''maynardi'', comes from Charles John ...

, Guadeloupe raccoon and the extinct Barbados raccoon).

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q2164279 Endangered biota of Mexico Endangered fauna of North America Endemic mammals of Mexico Fauna of Islas Marías Mammals described in 1898 Jalisco dry forests Procyonidae Taxa named by Clinton Hart Merriam