Raccoon Dog[1]
Conservation status
Least Concern (IUCN 2.3)[2]
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia Phylum: Chordata Class: Mammalia Order: Carnivora Family: Canidae Genus: Nyctereutes Species: N. The conservation status of a Species is an indicator of the likelihood of that species remaining extant either in the present day or the near future Least Concern ( LC) is an IUCN category assigned to extant species or lower taxa which have been evaluated but do not qualify for any other category The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species (also known as the IUCN Red List or Red Data List) created in 1963 is the world's most comprehensive inventory of the global Chordates ( Phylum Chordata) are a group of Animals that includes the Vertebrates together with several closely related Invertebrates Mammals ( class Mammalia) are a class of Vertebrate Animals characterized by the presence of Sweat glands, including sweat glands The diverse order Carnivora (kɑrˈnɪvərə or sometimes /ˌkɑrnɪˈvɔərə/ from Latin carō (stem carn-) "flesh" + vorāre The Canidae (ˈkænədiː ′kanə′dē family is a part of the order Carnivora within the Mammals (Class Mammalia Nyctereutes is an east Asian Genus of the family Canidae, consisting of a single extant species the Raccoon Dog procyonoides
Binomial name
Nyctereutes procyonoides (Gray, 1834)

The Raccoon Dog (Nyctereutes procyonoides, from the Greek words nycto-, "night"; ereutes, "wanderer"; procyon, "raccoon"; and the suffix -oid) is a member of the canid family (which includes dogs, wolves, and foxes) and is indigenous to east Asia. John Edward Gray ( 12 February 1800 &ndash 7 March 1875) was a British zoologist. The Ancient Greek language is the historical stage in the development of the Hellenic language family spanning the Archaic (c In Grammar, a suffix (also postfix, ending) is an Affix which is placed at the end of a word The Canidae (ˈkænədiː ′kanə′dē family is a part of the order Carnivora within the Mammals (Class Mammalia It is not a true dog, and is the only extant species in its genus Nyctereutes. Extant is a term commonly used to refer to Taxa (such as Species, genera or families) that are still in existence (living A genus (plural genera from Γένος Latin genus "descent family type gender" is a low-level Taxonomic Nyctereutes is an east Asian Genus of the family Canidae, consisting of a single extant species the Raccoon Dog It is named for its superficial resemblance to the non-canid raccoon, although individuals living in the Arctic have fur that changes to white so they can blend in with their surroundings. The raccoon ( Procyon lotor) (sometimes spelt as racoon) also known as the common raccoon, North American raccoon, northern raccoon

The Raccoon Dog is native to China, Korea, Japan, and southeastern Siberia. China ( Wade-Giles ( Mandarin) Chung¹kuo² is a cultural region, an ancient Civilization, and depending on perspective a National Korea is a geographic area composed of two sovereign countries a civilization and a former state situated on the Korean Peninsula in East Asia. For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Japan topics. Siberia (Сиби́рь Sibir) is the name given to the vast region constituting almost all of Northern Asia and for the most part currently serving Average adult head and body length is about 65 cm (2 ft) and weight ranges from 4 to 10 kg (9 to 22 lb). Average litters are large, up to 15 or more pups. Longevity is 3–4 years in the wild and up to 11 years in captivity. It is found in both plains and mountainous regions and is especially common in woodlands. Ecologically a woodland is an area covered in trees differentiated from a Forest. The Raccoon Dog is commonly seen near villages and in rural areas. A village is a clustered human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet, but smaller than a Town or City. Rural areas can be large and isolated (also referred to as "the country" and/or "the countryside over the course of time

Native East Asia Raccoon Dog populations have declined in recent years due to hunting, fur trade and fur trapping, urbanization, an increase of animals associated with human civilization such as pets and abandoned animals, and diseases that may be transmitted between them. Hunting is the practice of pursuing Animals for Food, Recreation, or Trade. The fur trade is a worldwide industry dealing in the acquisition and sale of animal Fur. The activity of animal trapping has two separate but related meanings Urbanizationn (also spelled urbanisation) is the physical growth of Urban areas into rural or natural land as a result of population in-migration to an existing A Civilization is a society in which large numbers of people share a variety of common elements A pet is an Animal kept for companionship and enjoyment or a househeld animal as opposed to Livestock, Laboratory animals Working animals A disease is an abnormal condition of an organism that impairs bodily functions and can be deadly In Medicine, transmission is the passing of a Disease from an infected individual or group to a previously uninfected individual or group

Classification and subspecies

There is some debate in the scientific community regarding speciation between the Siberian subspecies (N. Speciation is the Evolutionary process by which new biological Species arise p. ussuriensis), Chinese subspecies (N. China ( Wade-Giles ( Mandarin) Chung¹kuo² is a cultural region, an ancient Civilization, and depending on perspective a National p. procyonoides) and the Japanese raccoon dog subspecies (N. p. viverrinus) in that due to chromosome, behavioral and weight differences, the Japanese raccoon dog should be considered a separate species from the two other subspecies. A chromosome is an organized structure of DNA and Protein that is found in cells. Behavior or behaviour (see spelling differences) refers to the actions or Reactions of an object or Organism, usually ^[3]

The five recognized subspecies of the Raccoon Dog are:^[1]

• Nyctereutes procyonoides koreensis (Mori, 1922) found in Korea
• Nyctereutes procyonoides orestes (Thomas, 1923) found in Yunnan (China)
• Nyctereutes procyonoides ussuriensis (Matschie, 1907) found in South Siberia (Russia)
• Nyctereutes procyonoides viverrinus (Japanese Raccoon Dog) (Temminck, 1838) found in Japan
• Nyctereutes procyonoides procyonoides (Temminck, 1838) found in the rest of Asia

A Raccoon Dog in a zoo

Behavior

Like many other canids, it is omnivorous. Korea is a geographic area composed of two sovereign countries a civilization and a former state situated on the Korean Peninsula in East Asia. THOMAS is the database of United States Congress legislative information started in 1995 China ( Wade-Giles ( Mandarin) Chung¹kuo² is a cultural region, an ancient Civilization, and depending on perspective a National Paul Matschie (1861 &ndash 1926 was a German Zoologist. He worked at the Zoological Museum in Berlin. Siberia (Сиби́рь Sibir) is the name given to the vast region constituting almost all of Northern Asia and for the most part currently serving Russia (Россия Rossiya) or the Russian Federation ( Rossiyskaya Federatsiya) is a transcontinental Country extending The Japanese Raccoon Dog ( Nyctereutes procyonoides viverrinus) also known as the, is conventionally considered as a Subspecies of the raccoon dog The Japanese Raccoon Dog ( Nyctereutes procyonoides viverrinus) also known as the, is conventionally considered as a Subspecies of the raccoon dog Coenraad Jacob Temminck ( March 31, 1778, Amsterdam - January 30, 1858, Lisse) was a Dutch aristocrat and For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Japan topics. Coenraad Jacob Temminck ( March 31, 1778, Amsterdam - January 30, 1858, Lisse) was a Dutch aristocrat and However, its diet is atypically diverse, consisting of invertebrates, frogs, lizards, rodents and birds along with seeds and berries. An invertebrate is an Animal lacking a Vertebral column. The group includes 98% of all animal Species — all animals except those in the Chordate This article is about the block cipher algorithm For the ultrafast laser pulse measurement technique see Frequency-resolved optical gating. Lizards are a large and widespread group of Reptiles of the order Squamata, with nearly 5000 species and ranging across all continents except Rodentia is an order of Mammals also known as rodents, characterised by two continuously-growing incisors in the upper and lower jaws which must Birds ( class Aves) are bipedal endothermic ( Warm-blooded) Vertebrate animals that lay eggs. A seed (in some plants referred to as a kernel) is a small embryonic Plant enclosed in a covering called the seed coat usually with some stored The word berry has two meanings one based on a botanical definition the other on common identification Those living near the ocean will also eat crabs and scavenged marine life. Crabs are decapod Crustaceans of the infraorder Brachyura, which typically have a very short projecting "tail" (βραχύ / brachy

The Raccoon Dog is secretive and not very aggressive; it prefers to hide or scream rather than fight, and plays dead to avoid animals that will eat them. It is monogamous; some fights occur between males for the females. Monogamy is the custom or condition of having only one mate in a Relationship, thus forming a Couple. Mating season begins when the Raccoon Dog emerges from its winter den. A lair is a underground or other enclosed place that Animals use to hide themselves while at Sleep, Hibernation or when they take part in Reproduction The female is in heat for about six days. The baculum tie in coitus lasts about 6 minutes, less than in other canids. The baculum (also penis bone, penile bone or os penis) is a Bone found in the Penis of most Mammals It is absent When the cubs are born after a gestation of about 60 days, the male will assist in cub-rearing, first by providing food to his mate and then also caring for the cubs when they are weaned, about 50 days after birth, while the mother gathers food. Raccoon Dog pups continue to nurse even after they begin eating solid food. They aren't weaned until eight weeks of age, later than any other canid. They become physically and sexually mature after one year.

The Raccoon Dog is the only canid to go into torpor through the cold months. Torpor is a (usually short-term state of decreased physiological activity in an animal usually characterized by a reduced body temperature and rate of metabolism It is also unusual in that its curved claws enable it to climb trees; the only other canid with this ability is the Gray Fox. The Gray Fox ( Urocyon cinereoargenteus) is a Mammal of the order Carnivora ranging throughout most of the southern half of North America It does not bark and it turns its tail into an inverted U to express dominance. The Raccoon Dog's teeth are small for a canid.

Introduction in Europe

Between 1929 and 1955, the N. p. ussuriensis subspecies were introduced to the European part of the Soviet Union as potential fur or game animals and have spread rapidly since. The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR was a constitutionally Socialist state that existed in Eurasia from 1922 to 1991 In 1948, 35 Raccoon Dogs were introduced in Latvia. The population increased rapidly. In 1960 Latvia officially reported that a total of 4210 Raccoon Dogs were hunted. ^[4] No negative effects on native fauna have been reported. However, speculation exists that the introduction of the Raccoon Dog to Europe brought with it infected ticks that introduced the Asian Tick-borne meningoencephalitis virus. Tick-borne meningoencephalitis or Tick-borne encephalitis is a tick-borne Viral infection of the Central nervous system affecting humans as well ^[5]

The Raccoon Dog is now abundant throughout Finland and the Baltic states, and has been reported as far as France, Italy,^[6] and Switzerland. Finland, officially the Republic of Finland ( is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of northern Europe. The Baltic states (Balti riigid Baltijas valstis Baltijos valstybės or Baltic countries are three countries in Northern Europe, all members of the This article is about the country For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic France topics. Italy (Italia officially the Italian Republic, (Repubblica Italiana is located on the Italian Peninsula in Southern Europe, and on the two largest Switzerland (English pronunciation; Schweiz Swiss German: Schwyz or Schwiiz Suisse Svizzera Svizra officially the Swiss Confederation ^[7]

Cultural significance

Main article: Tanuki

The animal carries historical and cultural significance in Japan, where it is called tanuki, a term which is also sometimes translated as "badger" and often mistakenly translated into English as "raccoon". is the Japanese word for the Japanese raccoon dog ( Nyctereutes procyonides viverrinus) For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Japan topics. is the Japanese word for the Japanese raccoon dog ( Nyctereutes procyonides viverrinus) Traditionally, different areas of Japan would have different names for raccoon dogs as animals, which would be used to denote different animals in other parts of the country, however the official word in the standard Tokyo dialect is now "tanuki", a term that carries folkloric significance. It is also a common theme in Japanese art, especially statuary.

Use for fur

An investigation by three animal protection groups into the Chinese fur trade in 2004 and part of 2005 asserts that approximately 1. 5 million raccoon dogs are being raised for fur in China. ^[8] The Raccoon Dog comprises 11% of all animals hunted in Japan. ^[9] Twenty percent of domestically produced fur in Russia is from the Raccoon Dog. ^[10]

On April 24, 2008, The Humane Society of the United States (HSUS) filed a false advertising complaint with the US Federal Trade Commission alleging that at least 20 retailers in the US have been mislabeling Raccoon Dog fur. The Humane Society of the United States ( HSUS) is a Washington D According to HSUS, 70% of fur garments they tested were Raccoon Dog but were mislabeled as faux fur, Coyote, rabbit or other animals. Fake fur, also called fun fur or faux fur, is any material made of Synthetic fibers designed to resemble Fur, normally as part of a piece The coyote (kaɪˈoʊti ˈkaɪoʊt ( Canis latrans) also known as the prairie wolf, is a Mammal of the order Carnivora Rabbits are small Mammals in the family Leporidae of the order Lagomorpha, found in several parts of the world ^[11]

References

• Nyctereutes procyonoides (TSN 183821). Integrated Taxonomic Information System. Integrated Taxonomic Information System ( ITIS) is a partnership designed to provide consistent and reliable information on the Taxonomy of biological Species Retrieved on 23 March 2006. Events 1174 - Jocelin, Abbot of Melrose, is elected Bishop of Glasgow. Year 2006 ( MMVI) was a Common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar.

External links

• World Conservation Union - article on raccoon dogs
• America Zoo - basic info, one image
• Lioncrusher's Domain - detailed information, image
• canids.org - technical and conservation information
• Lauri Sippu's page - many images
• BBC - very basic information with images
• Animal Planet - basic information, image
• Foundation TV's "Brilliant Creatures" - a pair of on-camera raccoon dogs