Behavior: Raccoons are nocturnal, but can occasionally be seen during daylight hours. They are solitary animals and the only social group raccoons form consist of a mother and her young. Although they move slowly, with a shuffle like walk, they can reach speeds of 15 miles per hour on the ground. Raccoons climb with agility and are can withstand a drop of 35 feet from a tree. Raccoons are excellent climbers and strong swimmers.
Reproduction: Raccoons mate between late January or early February. Male raccoons are polygamous, or will mate with several females in succession.
Females, however, are monogamous, and will mate with only one male and will not tolerate other males after mating has occurred. Baby raccoons are called kits or cubs and are usually born in the early summer. Females have one to seven offspring after a gestation period of 60 to 73 days. As a group, a mother and her baby raccoons are called a nursery.
For the first two months of their lives, babies live in their den and are weened at 7 to 16 weeks. At 12 weeks, they will start to roam away from their mothers for whole nights at a time, according to the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife. They become completely independent at 8 to 12 months of age.
Raccoons live around 2 to 3 years in the wild. They are also strong swimmers and can easily cross rivers and lakes, but only venture into deep water as an escape route from trouble. It is commonly believed that raccoons wash their food.
Evidence indicates that only those in captivity wash their food and that the washing is a fixed-motor pattern used in searching for aquatic prey in the wild. Raccoons are mostly nocturnal. Another myth about them says if they are seen out in the daytime, they must be rabid. It is quite common, especially in urban areas, for a healthy animal to venture out during the day if it is hungry or its den has been destroyed.
Frequently, mother raccoons that are nursing kits will be forced to search for food night and day. If an animal is behaving normally in the daytime, it is probably not rabid and should be left alone. Raccoons are not territorial. Preferred terrain is forested, with ponds, lakes, marshes or streams.
Raccoons are not found in terrain that lacks evergreen forests and water. When you release raccoons, it is imperative to find a place where there is plenty of water, no hunting, and people willing to feed the raccoons until they can find their own food. Raccoons usually den in hollow trees, rock crevices, and ground dens. In late fall and early winter, their fur will thicken into a heavy winter coat and they will eat as much as they can find as during harsh weather.
In winter, raccoons will spend weeks in their dens without eating. Contrary to belief, raccoons do not hibernate. Adult raccoons breed between January and June, depending on environment and environmental conditions. The first breeding cycle is at about ten months of age. While males are physically able to breed in the first year, they usually do not because of competition with older males. If the female does not become pregnant during the first estrus, she can come into estrus again four months later.
This is where the late babies come in. Most babies are born in April and May; the gestation period is about 63 days. Male raccoons have no role during gestation or cub-rearing. Litters are anywhere from one to seven; four is the usual size. Cubs are born very lightly furred, with a faint mask. Thankfully, the raccoons that may be causing trouble in and around your home should be significantly smaller.
So, how big are raccoons that don't regularly eat sweet treats? The average size range of an adult raccoon is between 18 and 28 inches in length. They typically weigh anywhere from 5 to 35 pounds. However, males are often larger than females and have been weighed at up to 60 pounds.
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