Cozumel Island Raccoon
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| Procyon pygmaeus (Merriam, 1901) |
The Cozumel Island Raccoon (Procyon pygmaeus), also known as the Cozumel Raccoon Bear or Pygmy Raccoon, is an endangered species confined to Cozumel Island off the coast of the Yucatan Peninsula, Mexico.[1]
The Cozumel Island Raccoon is, unlike the West Indian raccoons, morphologically distinctive [2] In 1901, Clinton Hart Merriam first described the Cozumel Island Raccoon as a distinct species from its mainland relative, Procyon lotor shufeldti (Common Raccoon subspecies), based on a number of morphological traits. Merriam described it 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".[3] Other authors agreed with Merriam's assessment [4][5]. E.A. Goldman noted that the reduced teeth point to a long period of isolation [6].
The Cozumel Island Raccoon is an example of insular dwarfism [7]. An archaeological study showed that Maya from Cozumel used raccoons of reduced stature [8], which suggests that the size reduction of this raccoon is not a recent phenomenon.[9]
This island species' weight is only 3-4 kg.[10]
[edit] References
- ^ Mustelid Specialist Group (1996). Procyon pygmaeus. 2006 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. IUCN 2006. Retrieved on 3 December 2006.
- ^ Helgen, K.M. & Wilson, D.E. 2003. "Taxonomic status and conservation relevance of the raccoons (Procyon spp.) of the West Indies". Journal of Zoology 259: 69-76.
- ^ Merriam, C. H. 1901. Six new mammals from Cozumel Island, Yucatan. Proceedings of the Biological Society of Washington 14:99-104.
- ^ Genoways, H. H., and J. K. Jones. 1975. Annotated checklist of Mammals of the Yucatan Peninsula, Mexico. IV. Carnivora, Sirenia, Perissodactyla, Artiodactyla. Occasional Papers The Museum of Texas Tech University 26:1-22.
- ^ Jones, J. K., and T. E. Lawlor. 1965. Mammals from Isla Cozumel, Mexico, with description of a new species of harvest mouse. University of Kansas Publications, Museum of Natural History 16:409-419.
- ^ Goldman, E. A. 1950. Raccoons of North and Middle America. North American Fauna 60:1-153.
- ^ Helgen, K. M., and D. E. Wilson. 2004. A systematic and zoogeographic overview of the raccoons of Mexico and Central America in V. Cordero-Sanchez, and R. A. Medellin, editors. Contribuciones matozoologicas en homenaje a bernardo villa. Instituto de Biologia e Instituto de Ecologia, UNAM, Mexico City.
- ^ Hamblin, N. L. 1984. Animal Use by the Cozumel Maya. The University of Arizona Press, Tuscon.
- ^ McFadden, K.W. 2004. The Ecology, Evolution and Natural History of the Endangered Carnivores of Cozumel Island, Mexico. Columbia University. Online pdf
- ^ Perry, B. 2005. Cozumel Island Raccoon. American Zoo and Aquarium Association's Small Carnivore Website. Retrieved on 3 December 2006.
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