Tuesday, April 27, 2010

A special raccoon

In September 2007 I came across a lovely "mask-less" raccoon on Mount Royal. The next season I was lucky enough to see her again and with three normally masked babies!



This Saturday I came across what I believe is the same raccoon and she is bigger and her face is whiter! Perhaps the pigment fades with age. However she was quite agile and climbed a tree to sit on a large branch and groom herself.
It was wonderful to see her again and to know she is fine and healthy. I checked into the lifespan of raccoons and from various sources found a range of 3 years to 10 years in the wild and up to 20 years in captivity. I hope she has a long, happy life.













33 comments:

  1. I don't know what you'd fine if you weren't living in a metropolis, but you do come up with great finds. To me, the raccoons face looks very fox-like without the mask. Very neat pictures.

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  2. If they have the capability to live 20 years it is a shame that their lifespan in their normal habitat is so much shorter. Hopefully she'll live for many more years. Hmmm... I wonder how rare a mask-less raccoon is...

    Great shots!

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  3. What a lovely looking creature, and I like the last photo!
    Their much shorter life span in the wild shows just how tough it can be for them.
    Flighty xx

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  4. Yes, it is a shame that their lifespan is so much shorter in the wild. Hopefully in this environment where few predators exist and food seems readily available, she will live a long life.

    Anvilcloud, you mention it looking like a fox and I have also heard "dog" and "oppossom". Quite a special creature!

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  5. Oops, that should have been "opossum".

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  6. Beautiful indeed! I have pictures of a 'maskless' raccoon also but unfortunately it's one my dog killed. A shame, really neat looking and unique.

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  7. People compare the one my dog found with a fox and a opossum. Mine looks younger than yours,coat not full at all but it's also very hot here. Mine really has the fur colorations that resemble more that of a opossum. Absolutely no markings on face at all. Greyish white in color(or silver).

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  8. I have a maskless raccoon living near me. She comes into the yard for a drink every day. Her 2 babies both have masks. We originally called her "Duffer" since she looked like an old grey raccoon. Whows how much we know.

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    1. How nice to hear of another maskless raccoon! And nice that she lives nearby. Thanks for sharing your story with me. :-)

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  9. WE TOO HAVE A MASKLESS RACOON THAT HAS BEEN AROUND 6 OR 7 YEARS AND HAS A COUPLE BABIES EVERY SPRING...

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  10. Wow, I've never seen this b4. How interesting and pretty! Sharing. ��

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  11. We have one too! We named her Ursula - she lives in our woods - she's been with us for three years - none of her kits inherited that trait either -

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    1. Dear Gato Grotto: Thanks for your comment. I'm so happy that your special raccoon is doing so well. I hope she lives a long, good life.

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  12. Hi Doris, Just came across your blog when trying to find out if there are white faced raccoons. Saw one last night on my porch where I feed a feral cat. It was stunning and if I wasn't standing in awe I would've liked to take a picture. I live in Westhampton Beach, NY and I've never seen a raccoon without a mask. They are such beautiful creatures.Your photos are awesome. I am an animal rights advocate and vegan as well. My daughter and I just started a blog called thehamptonsvegan.com. Anyway, hope you see your raccoon again!

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    1. Hi Julie, thanks so much for leaving your nice comments. It's great to meet a fellow animal rights advocate and vegan. Your blog is lovely and I have subscribed to it. I don't bake or cook but I will pass on your vegan recipes to others! Best wishes.

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  13. I just had a maskless raccoon dining in my back yard. She I think she was accompanied by at times 5 others. They ate dog food, checked out my chickens and ate a few of the pecans I have on the porch waiting for me to crack. I hope they like it here and continue to grace me with their presence.

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  14. I'm happy you got to see her Barry. I especially like your closing statement "I hope they like it here and continue to grace me with their presence." So nicely put ...

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    1. about 25 years ago, I had just started working at critter control, as a wildlife technician.
      (nuisance wildlife trapper)
      I to came across a "maskless" Raccoon, which would try to steal a meal out of my live traps almost daily and then look at me like hey let me go I've already eaten lol.
      Since then, Ive searched for any information on other raccoons that were similar just out of my own curiosity and fascination.
      The two possibilities for "maskless" raccoons are....
      #1
      a pattern /color anomaly
      (NOT GENETIC)
      #2
      a recessive gene
      (GENETIC)
      In my opinion number two is the most probable.
      Ibasis on the fax from the cases I have found (that are credible because of the fact other detail and our also or documented with pictures as evidence,or I have personally witnessed the "maskless" the case documented)
      *Again this is my opinion and without breeding two animals with the recessive gene, which to my knowledge, has not been done and therefore remains unproven.
      But even with my very basic understanding of genetics and similarities to "white-faced"or "maskless" oddities appearing within other animal species that have been proven to be genetic and the fact that the rare the oddity appears was somewhat Fair regularity over the complete entire range of raccoons from my research of all the recessive genes,pattern/color anomalies possible....
      2 show up the most or are documented the most and that's the so-called White raccoon (not albino) which is actually just a muted version of the normal raccoon coloration and "maskless" raccoon.
      If one parent carries the "Maskless" recessive gene
      (Whether or not the effects of that recessive gene is visibly apparent) and the other parent does not carry the same recessive gene (basically.... is a normal raccoon) all of The offspring will carry the "MASKLESS" recessive gene
      BUT, it will not be visible in any of The offspring,
      because it's still a recessive gene and recessive genes cant Trump, the dominant gene (responsible for the normal color and appeance of the Raccoon)
      Since all the offspring will Carry The "mask less" recessive gene..... the percentage of raccoons within that particular areathat the massless recessive gene is that Gene, in that area,will rise until at some point, within that particular area , a high enough percentage of the animals which carry that recessive gene will become a high enough, that there will be a high likelihood of two animals of breeding age and carry the "MASKLESS" gene, will breed together .....
      And if both parents, carry that recessive gene there's a great likelihood but The offspring or at least a percentage of them but no longer free fighting the dominant strain Gene with the recessive gene because the two recessive genes would become a CO dominant gene
      And would result in a percentage of those offspring,
      That will not appear or carry the "MASKLESS" gene , another small percentage will carry the gene, but will not show any of that genes effects in their appearance.
      And then there will be a percentage of the offspring that will carry the gene AND will be born ......"maskless" as well.
      **It's a little more complicated than this that's basically the cliff notes version.
      if you have a white face or massless raccoon in your area the genes are there it's just going to take time for the right connection to happen for those jeans to unfold and results in more offspring with appearance or lack of.
      The raccoon I originally came across stayed in that area for about 4 years before it disappeared or died. I called her Frosty and she was almost tame.she was a beautiful and fascinating animal that I miss seeing.
      congratulations on your find. I hope this information helps you understand a little bit better.








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    2. Thank you for your interesting information.

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    3. Wow, that was very interesting. At 52 years old, raised on the country,, We just saw our first "white faced"/ maskless raccoon. We are i Greenville, AL.

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    4. Thank you for reading my blog and for telling me of your raccoon. I hope it lives a long, healthy life and that you get to see it again.

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  16. I think a friend and I may have just seen her again! We were surprised to see a raccoon without a mask, and now she doesn't have a tail and seems quite elderly. It's 13 years after you first met her.. cool to think it could be! <3

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    1. It certainly is cool to think it could be her. I would love that! Thanks for your comment.

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  17. My sister in PA has a raccoon in her barn with babies. She has a brown face and no mask-amazing to see.

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    1. Thank you for this comment. Let's hope the family does well!

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  18. I have been living in my house for 15 yrs and have had lots of raccoon every year. This is the first year I have a Mother with a white face and no mask. Thanks for your post. I was thinking this was very strange.

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    1. I'm glad you found my post and thank you for sharing your experience. I hope this Mother and her babies have good lives. :-)

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  19. I get raccons every year around this time. This year I saw one with a white face and a pink nose. My first thought was a raccoon and a possum mated. I honestly didn't know what to think, but I watched him for 15 minutes or so as he walked along the deck railing eating the corn and nuts I had put out.

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    1. Sorry for the late reply. Thanks so much for sharing your story. I hope your raccoon is doing well.

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