Hobbies And Interests
The Ultimate Omnivore
The common raccoon is among the most devotedly omnivorous of mammals. Much of its diet consists of plant materials, from corn and wheat to fruits and seeds. It joins white-tailed deer, black bears, squirrels and any number of other animals in taking advantage of the ripening of tree nuts such as acorns, walnuts and beechnuts. It particularly relishes sweet fruits and berries, snacking on everything from wild plums and palmetto fruits to the berries of manzanita and hawthorn.
Animal Prey
Throughout its massive range, the common raccoon also readily preys on animals, particularly invertebrates. It relishes freshwater crayfish, nimbly extracting them from streams and marshes. On seashores, it forages for clams, mussels, urchins and crabs. Raccoons catch fish and amphibians as well, and often dig out the buried eggs of a number of turtle species, from freshwater types such as the snapping turtle to those of sea turtles. They raid the nesting colonies of birds, eating both eggs and fledglings. Raccoons of America's freshwater marshes take advantage of the abundance of crippled waterfowl during the autumn hunting season, performing, in this sense, a valuable ecological service, according to Samuel I. Zeveloff in "Raccoons: A Natural History." Mammalian prey is similarly diverse: everything from mice to young muskrats.
Human Foods
In North America and in parts of Europe, where they have been introduced, raccoons live alongside humans with an ease shared by few other mammals. One reason for their success in urban and suburban landscapes is their omnivorous nature: Human settlements provide a wealth of food in the form of discarded scraps and garbage. Raccoons are notorious dumpster bandits, and also occasionally prey on domesticated animals such as chickens and ducks.
Other Raccoons
The handful of other raccoon species and sub-species all pursue omnivorous diets as well. The crab-eating raccoon of Central and South America, similar to its northern cousin but sporting much shorter fur, is common in coastal and riparian areas of the tropics and does indeed feed on crabs, along with other invertebrates, fish and amphibians.