| Barbados raccoon | |
|---|---|
Extinct (1964) | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Mammalia |
| Order: | Carnivora |
| Family: | Procyonidae |
| Genus: | Procyon |
| Species: | |
| Subspecies: | †P. l. gloveralleni |
| Trinomial name | |
| †Procyon lotor gloveralleni | |
| Synonyms | |
Procyon gloveralleni | |
The Barbados raccoon (Procyon lotor gloveralleni) is an extinct subspecies of the common raccoon (Procyon lotor), that was endemic on Barbados in the Lesser Antilles until 1964. [1]
In 1950, Edward Alphonso Goldman identified the Barbados raccoon as a distinct species, a classification that has been challenged over the past years by other scientists, who assume that it was a subspecies of the common raccoon. This assumption was supported by a study of its morphological and genetic analysis in 2003 by Kristofer M. Helgen and Don E. Wilson, which indicated that the Barbados raccoon was introduced by humans just a few centuries ago. [2] The study yielded the same result for the probably closely related subspecies Guadeloupe raccoon and Bahaman raccoon also living on West Indian islands. [3] Therefore, the Barbados raccoon is listed as a subspecies of the common raccoon in the third edition of Mammal Species of the World published in 2005. [4]
Compared to an average sized common raccoon the Barbados raccoon is small, making it an example of insular dwarfism. The Barbados raccoon bears resemblance to the Guadeloupe raccoon, for example in the short and delicate skull and the dark gray coat with a slight ocher tint on the neck and shoulders. Similarly, only few guard hairs cover the ground hairs on the underparts. The mask is continuous across the face.
In 1996, the Barbados raccoon was classified as extinct by the IUCN since its last sighting occurred in 1964, when one specimen was killed by a car on a road near Bathsheba. [5] [6] The only mounted specimen is exhibited at the Barbados Museum in the Garrison Historic Area. [6] According to a report of the IUCN in 1994, a pair of another species of raccoon has been introduced to Barbados. [7] Considering its small range, the Barbados raccoon was most likely never numerous except for the southern parts of the island. Habitat destruction due to tourism was probably one of the main causes for its extinction.[ citation needed ]
Procyon is a genus of nocturnal mammals comprising three species commonly known as raccoons in the family Procyonidae. The most familiar species, the common raccoon, is often known simply as "the" raccoon, as the two other raccoon species in the genus are native only to the tropics and are less well known. Genetic studies have shown that the closest relatives of raccoons are the ring-tailed cats and cacomistles of genus Bassariscus, from which they diverged about 10 million years ago.
The kinkajou is a tropical rainforest mammal of the family Procyonidae related to olingos, coatis, raccoons, and the ringtail and cacomistle. It is the only member of the genus Potos and is also known as the "honey bear". Though kinkajous are arboreal, they are not closely related to any other tree-dwelling mammal group.
The Tres Marias raccoon is a subspecies of the common raccoon endemic on the two main islands of the Islas Marías, an archipelago off the western coast of the Mexican state of Nayarit. Although sometimes considered to be a valid species, the Tres Marias raccoon is now regarded to be a subspecies of the common raccoon, introduced to the Islas Marías in the recent past. It is slightly larger than the common raccoon and has a distinctive angular skull. There are fewer than 250 mature individuals on the islands, they are hunted by the islanders and the International Union for Conservation of Nature has rated their conservation status as being "endangered".
The Cozumel coati, or Cozumel Island coati, is a coati from the Mexican island of Cozumel, in the Caribbean Sea. It is in the family Procyonidae, which also includes raccoons, olingos, and kinkajous.
The Cozumel raccoon is a critically endangered species of island raccoon endemic on Cozumel Island off the coast of the Yucatan Peninsula, Mexico. It is sometimes also called the pygmy raccoon, dwarf raccoon, Cozumel Island raccoon, and Cozumel raccoon bear.
The fauna of Barbados comprises all the animal species inhabiting the island of Barbados and its surrounding waters. Barbados has more biodiversity than the other Antilles. Human activities are responsible for the change in the composition of the fauna, in particular, the replacement of native species. Species that are able to adapt to human presence have survived.
The Guadeloupe raccoon is a common raccoon subspecies endemic to the two main islands of Guadeloupe in the Lesser Antilles.
The Manusela mosaic-tailed rat is a species of rodent in the family Muridae. It is found only in Indonesia. It lives in the rainforests on the island of Seram in Indonesia. Specimens of it weigh 66.5g and have a head and body length of 118-135mm and a tail length of 126–140mm.
The Bahamian raccoon, also called the Bahama raccoon or Bahamas raccoon, is a subspecies of the common raccoon endemic on the New Providence Island in the Bahamas. The subspecies name, maynardi, comes from Charles Johnson Maynard, an American naturalist.
The Tres Marias cottontail or Tres Marias rabbit is a species of mammal in the family Leporidae.
The raccoon, also spelled racoon and sometimes called the common raccoon or northern raccoon to distinguish it from the other species, is a mammal native to North America. It is the largest of the procyonid family, having a body length of 40 to 70 cm, and a body weight of 5 to 26 kg. Its grayish coat mostly consists of dense underfur, which insulates it against cold weather. The animal's most distinctive features include its extremely dexterous front paws, its facial mask, and its ringed tail, which are common themes in the mythologies of the Indigenous peoples of the Americas surrounding the species. The raccoon is noted for its intelligence, and studies show that it is able to remember the solution to tasks for at least three years. It is usually nocturnal and omnivorous, eating about 40% invertebrates, 33% plants, and 27% vertebrates.
The term island raccoons is used as a generic term for four endangered and one extinct subspecies or species of raccoon (Procyon) endemic on small Mexican and Caribbean islands, such as Cozumel and Guadeloupe. Other subspecies of raccoon living on islands, like that of the common raccoon native to the Florida Keys, are generally not included under this term, since it was established at a time when all five "island raccoons" were considered distinct species. The five populations are:
A unique and diverse albeit phylogenetically restricted mammal fauna is known from the Caribbean region. The region—specifically, all islands in the Caribbean Sea and the Bahamas, Turks and Caicos Islands, and Barbados, which are not in the Caribbean Sea but biogeographically belong to the same Caribbean bioregion—has been home to several families found nowhere else, but much of this diversity is now extinct.
The Rio Grande ground squirrel is a species of squirrel in the family Sciuridae. It is found in the south-western United States and in north-eastern Mexico.
The olinguito is a mammal of the raccoon family Procyonidae that lives in montane forests in the Andes of western Colombia and Ecuador. It was classified as belonging to a new species in 2013. The specific name neblina is Spanish for fog or mist, referring to the cloud forest habitat of the olinguito.
The Sumatran hog badger is a species of mustelid endemic to the island of Sumatra in Indonesia.