Procyonidae is a family of mammals in the order Carnivora, which includes raccoons, coatis, olingos, kinkajous, ring-tailed cats, and cacomistles, and many other extant and extinct mammals. A member of this family is called a procyonid. They are native to North and South America, though the common raccoon has been introduced to Europe, western Asia, and Japan. Procyonid habitats are generally forests, though some are found in shrublands and grasslands as well. The ring-tailed cat has a varied range including rocky areas and deserts as well as forests, and the common raccoon is widespread in urban environments. Species range in size from around 30–65 cm (12–26 in) long, plus a tail generally as long again. Population sizes are largely unknown, though the Cozumel raccoon is critically endangered, with around 200 individuals left, and the Eastern mountain coati is endangered. No procyonid species have been domesticated, although raccoons are sometimes kept as pets. The fourteen species of Procyonidae are split into six genera, which are not currently grouped into named clades. Procyonidae is believed to have diverged as a separate family within Carnivora around 22.6 million years ago. In addition to the extant species, Procyonidae includes doxens of extinct species placed in the six extant and nineteen extinct genera, though due to ongoing research and discoveries the exact number and categorization is not fixed.
Conventions
The author citation for the species or genus is given after the scientific name; parentheses around the author citation indicate that this was not the original taxonomic placement. Conservation status codes listed follow the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species. Range maps are provided wherever possible; if a range map is not available, a description of the procyonid's range is provided. Ranges are based on the IUCN Red List for that species unless otherwise noted. All extinct species or subspecies listed alongside extant species went extinct after 1500 CE, and are indicated by a dagger symbol (†). Population figures are rounded to the nearest hundred.
Classification
The family Procyonidae consists of fourteen extant species belonging to six genera and divided into dozens of subspecies. This does not include hybrid species or extinct prehistoric species. Some prior classification schemes included the red panda or divided the family into named subfamilies and tribes based on similarities in morphology, though modern molecular studies indicate instead that the kinkajou is basal to the family, while raccoons, cacomistles, and ring-tailed cats form one clade and coatis and olingos another, despite morphology suggesting otherwise.
Genus Bassaricyon (olingos): four species Genus Bassariscus (ring-tailed cats and cacomistles): two species Genus Nasua (coatis): two species Genus Nasuella (mountain coatis): two species Genus Potos (kinkajous): one species Genus Procyon (raccoons): three species
Procyonids The following classification is based on the taxonomy described by Mammal Species of the World (2005), with augmentation by generally accepted proposals made since using molecular phylogenetic analysis; this includes rearranging Bassaricyon from five species to a mostly different four, and promoting the eastern mountain coati from a subspecies of the mountain coati. There are additional proposals which are disputed, such as promoting the Guadeloupe raccoon population of the Bahamian raccoon subspecies of raccoon to a separate subspecies, which are not included here.
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