South American Coati

The South American coati, also known as the ring-tailed coati, is a coati species and a member of the raccoon family, found in the tropical and subtropical parts of South America. An adult generally weighs from 2–7.2 kg and is 85–113 cm long, with half of that being its tail. The South American coati is omnivorous and primarily feeds on fruit, invertebrates, small animals, and birds' eggs. They search for fruit using their long snout to poke through leaves and crevices and their sharp claws to rip open logs and overturn rocks. The South American coati is widespread in tropical and subtropical South America. It occurs in the lowland forests east of the Andes as high as 2,500 m (8,200 ft) from Colombia and The Guianas south to Uruguay and northern Argentina.

Scientific name: Nasua nasua

Conservation status: Least Concern (Population decreasing)

Mass: 8.7 lbs

Trophic level: Omnivorous

Gestation period: 75 days

Length: 1.7 ft. (Adult)

Higher classification: Nasua