Size

• Raccoons have an average weight of between 15 and 20 pounds with a 30-pound raccoon considered a large specimen. The largest raccoon on record is a 62 pounder, but that is easily the biggest one ever found. From head to rump a raccoon measures about 2 feet long, with a tail that can be another foot in some cases. The males are about one fifth larger than the females of the species.
  
  

Identification

• The raccoon has a trademark "mask," an area of blackish fur that surrounds the eyes. The face has white fur along with gray and the rest of the body is a mix of gray, blackish and white fur with a tail that has black rings. The raccoon has front paws with which it can easily handle its food and it is capable of sitting back on its hind legs while doing so. Raccoons are excellent swimmers and tree climbers, living in dens either in trees or in crevices in rocks. They prefer to reside in hardwood forests near a source of water but easily adapt to living in urban areas as well.
  
  

Considerations

• The diet of the raccoon consists of both animals and vegetables, so it is classified as an omnivore. Raccoons will catch and eat fish, crayfish, mollusks, birds, small mammals like mice and voles, worms and a variety of plants and vegetables. They like to eat corn and grapes, making them a frequent raider of vineyards and gardens.
  
  

Misconceptions

• Raccoons account for over 1/3 of the documented rabies cases in the U.S. each year, but despite the idea that they are a primary source of spreading the disease to people, only one human death has ever been attributed to rabies from a raccoon. There is also the misconception that raccoons wash their food in water with their front paws before eating it. However, biologists now believe that raccoons are merely moving their food around in their paws and examining it, although they will put it in the water if they are near any.
  
  

Expert Insight

• Raccoons have been trapped for their fur and hunted since colonial times. Raccoon hunting is still popular in certain sections of the U.S., with the Deep South as one region where hunting raccoons is still done. It involves the use of a dog that picks up the scent of a raccoon, chases it until it climbs up into a tree, and then barks until the hunters arrive. The hunter will attempt to locate the raccoon in the branches with a powerful flashlight and then, if possible, shoot the raccoon. Being very intelligent, a raccoon can often trick the dog by going up one tree and then down and into another. It has also been known to drown a hunting dog if it can get one into a river or stream.