A Group of White-Nosed Coati (Nasua narica). Guanacaste, Costa Rica

When I visited Costa Rica recently, on several occasions we ran across groups of White-Nosed Coati (Nasua narica). These curious creatures are related to raccoons although they have many idiosyncratic differences. The White-Nosed Coati (Nasua narica), also known as the coatimundi is a member of the family Procyonidae which includes three other species of Coati, raccoons and ringtails. Unlike raccoons, Coati are active during the day although they will sometimes forage at night. Local Spanish names for the species include pizote, antoon, and tejón, depending upon the region. Coati females and young males up to two years of age are gregarious and travel through their territories in noisy, loosely organized bands made up of four to 25 individuals, foraging with their offspring on the ground or in the forest canopy. Males over two years become solitary due to behavioural disposition and collective aggression from the females and will join the female groups only during the breeding season. Coatis are common, with habitants ranging from hot and dry regions to humid rainforest or even Cold Mountain slopes, including bushy areas and grasslands. They can be easily seen in all part of Costa Rica and and the countries national parks.
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