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What does nosuha eat. Nosukha (coati). A complete description of the animal and its lifestyle in the wild. Where to buy a coat

Nosoha, or coati, are representatives of a genus of small-sized mammals belonging to the raccoon family. The predator has become widespread on the territory of both American continents. His Spanish, French and English title"coati" animals owe one of the Indian local languages.

Description of the coat

The noses got their unusual and very original name due to the small and rather mobile proboscis formed by the elongated nose and the frontal part of the animal's upper lip. Average length the body of an adult animal varies between 41-67 cm, with a tail length of 32-69 cm. The maximum weight of a sexually mature individual, as a rule, does not exceed 10-11 kg.

The anal glands of the coat are distinguished by a special arrangement, unique among the representatives of Carnivora. A peculiar glandular region, located along the upper part of the anus, contains a series of so-called bags, opening with four and even five special cuts on the sides. The fatty secret secreted by such glands is actively used by animals to mark their territory.

Appearance

The most common South American nose is characterized by the presence of a narrow head with an elongated and noticeably upward, incredibly flexible and mobile nose. The ears of a predatory mammal are small, rounded, with white rims on the inside. The neck is pale yellowish. The muzzle area of ​​such an animal, as a rule, has a uniform brown or black color. Lighter, pale spots are located above and below, slightly behind the eyes. The fangs are blade-like and the molars have sharp cusps.

It is interesting! Russian anthropologist Stanislav Drobyshevsky called nosuhi "ideal candidates for intelligence", which is due to the maintenance of an arboreal lifestyle, as well as sociality and well-developed limbs.

The legs of the coat are short and rather powerful, with very mobile and well-developed ankles. Thanks to this feature, the predator is able to climb down from the trees not only with the front, but also with the rear end of its body. The claws located on the fingers are long. The feet have bare soles.

It is the strong clawed paws that allow the noses to easily climb various trees. In addition, the limbs are quite successfully used by a predator to search for food in the soil or forest litter. As a rule, the legs of the coat are dark brown or black in color.

The body area of ​​the animal is covered with relatively short, thick and rather fluffy fur. The South American noso is characterized by the presence of a wide variability in color, which manifests itself not only within the habitat or distribution area, but even in cubs belonging to the same litter. Most often, the body color varies from slightly orange or reddish hues to dark brown. The tail of the nose is long and two-colored, with the presence of fairly light yellowish rings, alternating with brown or black rings. In some individuals, the rings in the tail area are barely visible.

Lifestyle, behavior

Nosoha are animals that are active only during daylight hours. For lodging and rest, the predator chooses the largest branches of trees, where coatis feel safe.

A rather cautious animal descends to the ground in the early morning hours, even before dawn. During the morning toilet, a thorough cleaning of the fur and muzzle is performed, after which the coat goes hunting.

It is interesting! An interesting fact is that noses are animals that use a rich set of all kinds of sounds, developed facial expressions and special signal poses to communicate with each other.

Females with their offspring prefer to stay in groups, total strength of which there are two dozen individuals. Adult males most often lead a solitary lifestyle, but the most courageous of them often try to join a group of females and are rebuffed. At the same time, females warn their group of any approaching danger with rather loud, characteristic barking sounds.

How long do noses live

The average life expectancy of a predatory mammal is no more than twelve years, but there are also individuals who live up to the age of seventeen.

sexual dimorphism

The females of the coaty become sexually mature by the age of two, and the males start breeding after reaching the age of three years. Adult males are almost twice as large as mature females.

Types of coats

The genus Nosuch includes three main species and one, found exclusively in the Andean valleys, in the northwestern part South America. This view of this moment referred to a separate genus Nasuella. The mountain nose belongs to a separate genus, the representatives of which are distinguished by a very characteristic shortened tail, as well as the presence of a small head, which is more laterally compressed. Such animals are quite easily tamed by humans, so they may well be kept as exotic pets.

It is interesting! For each of the groups of noses in their natural habitat, a certain territory is assigned, the diameter of which is about one kilometer, but such "allotments" often overlap slightly.

Common nose (Nasua nasua) is represented by thirteen subspecies. This predatory mammal lives at an altitude of up to two thousand meters above sea level and is larger in size. For an adult common coat characterized by a light brown color.

Nelson's nose is the representative of the genus with the darkest color and the presence white spot in the neck area. The coloration of an adult animal is characterized by a similarity of noticeable gray hair on the shoulders and forelimbs. The coati species is characterized by the presence of white "rims" on the ears. There are also light-colored spots in the area around the eyes, due to which they have a vertically elongated appearance. There is a yellowish spot on the neck of representatives of the species.

Range, habitats

Nosoha live in North and South America, as well as on nearby islands. The mountain nose inhabits the Andes, which, by their territorial affiliation, belong to Venezuela, Ecuador and Colombia.

Representatives of a rather numerous species of coati are found on the territory of South America, therefore they are known as the South American species. The main populations of such a predatory mammal are concentrated mainly in Argentina.

It is interesting! As the practice of observations shows, most of all representatives of raccoon like to settle in coniferous forests belonging to the temperate climate zone.

Nelson's nose is an inhabitant exclusively of the island of Cozumel, located in the Caribbean Sea and belonging to the territory of Mexico. Representatives common type are common animals North America. According to scientists, nosoha, unlike very many other animals, relate to a rich variety of climatic zones. For example, coatis have adapted perfectly to even the driest pampas, as well as to humid tropical forest areas.

Nosuha diet

Small-sized mammals belonging to the raccoon family obtain food with the help of an extremely mobile and long nose that moves. In the process of such stirring, through noticeably flaring nostrils, air currents, due to which the foliage scatters and various insects become visible.

In the standard diet of medium-sized predatory mammals includes:

  • termites;
  • ants;
  • spiders;
  • scorpions;
  • all kinds of beetles;
  • insect larvae;
  • lizards;
  • frogs;
  • not too large rodents.

It is interesting! Nosoha are usually engaged in the search for food in whole groups, be sure to notify all participants in the search about the discovery of food with a rather highly raised vertical tail and a very characteristic vocal whistle.

Sometimes adult coatis prey on land crabs. Nosoha habitually and very deftly clamp any of their prey between their front paws, after which it is enough for the victim sharp teeth biting the neck or head. In the absence of food of animal origin, the noses are quite capable of satisfying the need for food with fruits, carrion, as well as various garbage from garbage dumps and the human table.

The animal known as coati is scientifically called coati (coatimundi or coat). This name came from the words Indian language Tupian - coati meaning "belt" and mun meaning "nose". Nosukha this animal of the raccoon family was nicknamed because of the movable, trunk-like nose. Inside it are sensitive receptors responsible for recognizing odors. A huge number of muscles makes this "process" very flexible, because coati examine natural recesses in search of food with it.

Nose types:

  1. Nasua nasua (Common nosoha);
  2. Nasua narica (Coati);
  3. Nasuella olivacea (Mountain nosoha);
  4. Nasua nelsoni (Nelson's coat).

Finding photos of representatives of each species is not difficult.

It is a subspecies of the common coat (Nasua nasua Linnaeus). It is distinguished by a narrow head with a flexible movable nose directed upwards. Small round ears outside have white rims. The muzzle is brown or black. Slightly above and slightly below the eyes, as well as behind them there are light spots. The neck is yellowish. All the features of this cute animal are visible in his photo.

Short and powerful legs have movable ankles. This gives the animal the opportunity to climb down from the tree with either end of the body down. The fingers have long claws, and the soles of the paws are bare. The color of the legs is black or dark brown. Such limbs provide advantages in climbing trees and foraging in the soil. The tail of the animal is long, two-colored, with yellowish, black or brown rings.

Coatis are good divers and swimmers due to the webbing between their fingers. The noses are very clean, they rinse their prey, paws and tail in the water, as soon as they are on the shore of the reservoir.

The body of the South American coat is from 73 to 136 cm in length, and the tail is from 32 to 69 centimeters. When moving, it is always kept straight, although the upper tip is slightly curved. Height at the shoulders - 30 centimeters. The coati weighs 4.5 kg, however, large six-kilogram individuals can also be found. The entire body of the animal is covered with short, warm and fluffy fur.

Among the enemies of noses, the most annoying cats are cougars, jaguars, ocelots. In addition, they are “not friendly” with large birds. Life span in natural conditions - 7–8 years, and in captivity almost 18.

Lifestyle

Animals are active throughout the day. During the day they look for food, and at night they settle in the trees for the night. By the way, in the same place, in a well-equipped den, their offspring are born.

In general, the noses feel quite free on the trees. There they hide from the danger threatening from the ground, and easily jump from branch to branch if the danger is also “on top”. But coati walk leisurely, move at a gallop for short distances. They do this in a very unusual way - first they lean on the palms of their forelimbs, and then roll forward with their hind limbs. Average movement speed - 1 m per second.

A feature of animals is the various vocalizations they publish:

  • chirping;
  • whimpering;
  • screams;
  • grunt;
  • snoring.

With their help, coatis communicate.

The fangs of the animal are blade-like, and the molars have sharp tubercles. In total, the animal has 40 teeth in its mouth. Of course, it is unlikely that it will be possible to count them in the photo, but the data of animal researchers is worth trusting!

Nutrition

Nosuha is an omnivore. Its menu includes:

Nosuhi are also found in landfills, where they rummage through the remains of garbage. Also can steal chickens from farms.

Nosuha takes biting insects with its front paws and rolls on the ground in order to separate the sting in this way. big booty she presses her paws to the surface and kills with a bite to the neck.

Way of life

The way of life of animals is different depending on the sex. Females live in groups of 4 to 20 individuals. Composition - several sexually mature females with cubs. Groups are highly mobile, traveling long distances in search of food. Behavioral relationships in a group are complex. Remotely, they resemble the communication of primates. For example, clan members clean each other, care for cubs together, and drive away enemies. There are many touching photos where animals care for each other.

Each family group lives in his territory. Its diameter is, as a rule, 1 square kilometer. Nosuha in such groups are less endangered than individual individuals. To warn about her, the female uses barking sounds. They mark their territory with a fatty secretion secreted by the anal glands and urine. When an outsider invades, coatis will fight using their claws and fangs.

Anal glands are different special structure. This is a glandular area running along the upper edge of the anus, which contains a series of bags that open with four or five slits from the sides.

In the heat, noses prefer shade. When it subsides, they go hunting. In this case, the nosukha can travel up to 2 km. Young people spend time in games. At night, animals climb to the tops of trees, hiding from most predators.

reproduction

The lifestyle of males is solitary. They join groups of females with young animals only on mating season. It continues October to March. Males actively compete for females. Teeth are shown to the opponent and a threatening position is taken - lifting on hind legs with the end of the muzzle raised up. Only the strongest remain in the group. All sexually mature females mate with him, after which he leaves her. By the ripening of the fruits, when food is the most, there is a period of growing cubs.

Pregnancy lasts 74-77 days, after which 3 to 7 babies are born. At this time, the female leaves the group. She equips a nest in a hollow, where the offspring will be until such time as they can not walk and climb trees.

Newborns lack hair, vision, and they weigh from 70 to 85 grams. Eyes open only by 10 days of life. At 24 days, young coats are able to walk and focus their eyes, and at 26 they can climb trees. At 4 months old, they begin to eat thick food. The female with cubs returns to the group when they are 5-6 weeks old. To keep the young near her during the period of weaning, she "whines". Finally, this happens by 4 months. Up to this point, the coat is nursing the younger generation. Females are considered sexually mature at 2 years old, and males at 3. You can find a photo of a newborn animal on the Internet.

You can “get acquainted” with the South American nosoha in the South American tropics - from Colombia and Venezuela to Uruguay, Ecuador and northern Argentina. The mountain dwells on the eastern and southern slopes of the Andes, however, up to a height of 2500 meters.

Nosuh clan membership and social behavior

What qualities must individuals have in order to be accepted into the clan? It should be noted that it is not always formed based family ties . True, the “foreign” representatives of the group suffer more often than others from the aggression of its other members. They are forced out to the outskirts of the territory of the group, where it is easiest to be in the clutches of a predator. However, it is more profitable for noses to remain in a group and receive advantages than to be singles.

Unusually, resettlement occurs: females rarely leave the group in which they were born. Males, on the other hand, do this in the third year of life, however, they remain on the territory of the clan. They almost do not protect their habitat, except for places rich in food. Territories of groups of females and cubs, as well as mature males, can overlap by 66%, and only the core is used only by the main group.

conservation in nature

Despite the fact that most species of coatis are not endangered, there are reasons for concern. Nelson's nose, living on the island of Cozumel in Mexico, due to the development of industry and tourism threatened with extinction, and mountain noses are very sensitive to deforestation and human use of land.

These animals are protected by the Sites III Convention in Uruguay. The main dangers for them are hunting and human penetration into their habitats. To date, 10 subspecies of Nasua nasua have been recognized and described.

nosuha animal








The name was given due to its nose - elongated and rather mobile. Previously, they were called badgers, however, when real badgers were brought to Mexico, where they live, this animal was given a different, own name.

The article provides information about the nose: a photo of the animal, where it lives, lifestyle, etc.

General information

It should be noted that the word "coat" (coat or coatimundi) comes from the Indian Tupian. Coati is translated as "belt", mun - nose.

Coati (or noses) are mammals belonging to the raccoon family. This funny and cute animal resembles a fox. It lives in South and Central America. This good-natured animal is a favorite of local Indians. They are distinguished by a sociable and friendly disposition, they love to play with children and are quite easily tamed. However, farmers are more cool about the nosuha due to the habit of these animals to visit the chickens in their farmlands. Therefore, they have to set traps on them and even shoot at the approaches to the farm. Fortunately, nothing threatens their population yet - the number is quite large.

It is perfectly acceptable to keep a nosuha as a pet. She is quickly and easily tamed by humans.

Kinds

Naturalists from Europe, when they first saw noses, identified about 30 varieties based on the behavior and color of the wool of these animals, but modern taxonomists have reduced this number to three by today. And this is quite justified.

Both the morphology and the behavior of the noses are actually variable. Even the behavior of males and females is so different that they can be attributed to completely different species. Of course, these differences in more concern social behavior animals: females live in organized small groups ("clans") with cubs, and males live alone. Behavioral relationships are also quite complex and a little incomprehensible among noses. For example, clan members can clean each other, as well as take care not only of their cubs, but also of strangers. Among other things, they, through the joint efforts of the entire community, drive away predators.

In total, depending on the habitat, three types of coati are distinguished: coati, ordinary and Nelson's coati (previously it represented a separate species). Another species - the mountain nose, found only in the north-west of South America (in the Andes valleys), belongs to a separate genus of mountain noses (Nasuella).

habitats

Nosoha (a photo of the animal is presented in the article) lives in the tropics of Central and South America. The range extends from Venezuela and Colombia to Uruguay, northern Argentina and Ecuador. On the western and eastern slopes of the Andes, they can be found up to 2500 meters. These animals are perfectly adapted to live in a variety of natural conditions. They inhabit a wide variety of areas: shrubs and evergreens. rain forests. These animals are found in lowland primary forests, in rocky areas, in wooded areas of river banks and in dense shrubs. Currently, due to human influence, they prefer to settle along forest edges and secondary forests.

Most of all they prefer coniferous and deciduous forests to temperate climate zone. They easily tolerate both winter frosts and summer heat.

Description

The head of the coat (see photo in the article) is narrow, elongated. The muzzle ends with a surprisingly mobile nose. The small ears are slightly rounded. Brown small eyes are close-set. There are light symmetrical spots around the nose and eyes, and dark areas are noticeable on the cheeks. The long striped tail (about 69 centimeters) used by the animal for balancing is covered with short thick fur. On the toes of the paws there are strong claws, the tips of the paws are dark. The height at the withers reaches 29 centimeters, however, females are two times smaller in size than males. The length of the body with a tail is 80-130 centimeters, weight - up to 6 kilograms. The color of the coat is diverse: they are found with dark brown, red and grayish-brown coat colors.

The lifespan of this animal wild nature is approximately 14 years, and at home they live longer - more than 17 years.

Lifestyle, behavior

Nosukhs are animals that are active throughout the daylight hours. They arrange their lodging for the night on the largest branches of trees. They descend to the ground early in the morning, before dawn. Morning toilet consists in a thorough cleaning of the fur, after which they go hunting with a funny tail sticking up. The animal looks for food in fallen leaves, among branches and stones, which they deftly turn over. At noon, they rest only on the hottest summer days.

Females with their cubs live in groups of about 20 individuals, while males usually stay alone. There are brave males who try to join groups of females, however, there they are usually rebuffed. Females make barking sounds to warn their group of approaching danger.

Nosuhi are animals that communicate with each other through a rich set of sounds, developed facial expressions and signal poses. Them natural enemies - predator birds, boas, ocelots and jaguars. In the event of danger approaching, they hide in the nearest pit or hole. In the process of escaping from predators, their speed can reach up to 30 kilometers per hour. In addition, they can run for up to three hours without stopping. On the calmest days, these animals slowly go around their home properties (area from 40 to 300 hectares), while passing 2-7 kilometers per day.

A little about membership in the nosuh clan

Who is a legitimate member of the nosuh clan? Presumably, clans should be formed on the basis of blood kinship. However, in the case of noses, the results of genetic studies show that in reality, the clans of these amazing animals also include unrelated individuals.

Large-scale field studies that were carried out in Panama demonstrated that those very unrelated members of clans often represent the object of aggression from all other animals. They push them out of the territory of their community. And there it is quite possible to become a victim of predators. It turns out that it is more profitable for the noses to be in the clan, while receiving some advantages.

Diet

Nosuha is an omnivore animal. The diet includes various larvae, eggs, earthworms, beetles, centipedes, spiders, scorpions, ants, lizards, crabs, frogs and small rodents. They love to eat the fruits of various plants and ripe fruits, which they pick up from the ground or pluck from branches.

Sometimes the noses examine the garbage near human settlements, and they are also able to steal chickens from farmers.

reproduction

As noted above, adult males live alone, and they meet with other noses only during the breeding season. At the same time, males fight among themselves for the right to mate with females of a certain group.

The mating season lasts from January to March. The duration of pregnancy is 75 days. The female equips a nest for babies in a hollow or on the ground, in a hole. She gives birth to up to 6 cubs at a time. To keep them near her, the female makes whimpering sounds.

About newborns

Nosokha animals in a newborn state are helpless: they are blind, completely devoid of wool, weighing about 80 g. The eyes open about 10 days after birth. By 24 days of age, they have the ability to focus their eyes and walk. At 26 days, the cubs begin to climb branches. When the cubs are about 5-6 weeks old, the female returns to the family group with them. Mothers look after young people up to 4 months old.

Young females reach reproductive maturity at about 2 years of age, and the participation of males in reproduction begins at about 3 years of age. It should also be noted that adult males are dangerous for cubs. This is due to the fact that the latter are always expelled from the family group.

Finally

Men in recent times forests where these cute and funny animals live are increasingly being cut down, which is the main reason for their decline in numbers. Nosoha quickly get used to people, therefore they are able to live near human dwellings. However, often people are aggressive towards noses due to the fact that they cause significant damage to farms.

Fortunately, there is no threat of extinction for the noses today, but it cannot be said that there is no reason for concern. For example, one of the subspecies - Nelson's coat (little studied), living in Mexico (Cozumel Island), is threatened with destruction due to the rapidly developing tourism and industry, and the mountain coat turned out to be quite sensitive to human use of lands where forests were cut down.

The word "coat" (coatimundi or coat) comes from the Indian language Tupian: "coati" means "belt", "mun" means "nose". Animals belong to the raccoon family. The noses got their name due to their movable trunk-shaped nose.

The South American nosy (Nasua nasua) is found in tropical regions of South America, from Colombia and Venezuela to Uruguay, Ecuador and northern Argentina. On the eastern and western slopes of the Andes, they are found up to 2500 meters above sea level. Within their range, they inhabit a variety of habitats, from scrub to primary evergreen rainforests. They can be found in lowland forests, riverine woodlands, dense scrub and rocky terrain. Due to human influence, they currently prefer secondary forests and forest edges.

The South American nosoha is characterized by a narrow head with an elongated and upwardly directed very flexible movable nose. The ears are small and rounded, with white rims on the inside. The muzzle is usually colored uniform brown or black. Pale, lighter patches are located above, below, and behind the eyes. The neck is yellowish.

The legs are short and powerful, while their ankles are very mobile, thanks to which the noses can climb down from the tree with both the front and rear ends of the body down. The claws on the fingers are long, the soles are bare. Thanks to strong clawed paws, nosuha easily climbs trees and successfully uses them to search for food in the soil and forest floor. The legs are usually dark brown to black in color.

Body length reaches 73-136 cm; averages 104.5 cm; tail length - 32-69 cm, height at the shoulders - about 30 cm. The South American nosoha weighs on average about 4.5 kg, but there are individuals up to 6 kg. Their body is covered with short, thick and fluffy fur. The South American nosuha is characterized by wide color variability not only within the range, but even among babies from the same litter. Usually the body color varies from orange or reddish to dark brown. Brown, sometimes the rings are barely visible.

South American coats are usually active during the day, most which they spend on the ground in search of food, while at night they sleep in trees, which also serve to equip the den and give birth to offspring. When they are in danger on the ground, they hide from it on the trees; when the enemy is on a tree, they easily jump from the branch of one tree to the lower branch on the same or even another tree. South American coats are not only good tree climbers and good swimmers. On the ground they walk leisurely, although they can gallop for short distances, but they have never been observed moving at a trot. Their average speed of movement is about 1 m per second.

South American noses have blade-like fangs, and the molars and premolars have relatively high crowns with sharp tubercles. Their dental formula is i 3/3, s 1/1, p 4/4, m. 2/2, there are 40 teeth in total. Despite such a powerful dental arsenal, they are omnivorous animals. Their diet includes larvae of beetles and other insects, ants, termites, centipedes, spiders, scorpions, lizards, small mammals (usually rodents), they eat bird eggs, fruits and even carrion when it is available to them. They also met in landfills, scouring human garbage and picking out everything edible from it. Sometimes South American noses steal chickens from local farmers.

South American noses themselves have a variety of enemies, but most of all they are annoyed by large wild cats: jaguars, cougars, ocelots, jaguarundis, as well as large birds of prey and boas. In nature, their life expectancy is 7-8 years, and the maximum life expectancy in captivity is 17 years and 8 months. South American noses, depending on gender and age, lead a different lifestyle. So females live in groups of 4-20 or more individuals. Such a group includes several sexually mature females, and the rest of the members are their immature cubs. These groups are very mobile, animals move a lot in search of food.

Family groups live on their own territory, which is usually about 1 km. in diameter. The home ranges of different groups often overlap. South American coats have anal glands unique among the Carnivora in their arrangement. They are a glandular area located along the upper edge of the anus, containing a series of bags that open with four or five slits on the sides. The oily secretion secreted from these glands is used to mark territory, possibly in combination with urine. South American nosy in such groups often participate in social grooming, and are more resistant to enemies than solitary individuals. Females use barking vocalizations to alert friendly clan members to the presence of danger.

Males usually lead a solitary life and only during the mating season do they join the family groups of females with young. In the mating season, and this is usually from October to March, one male is accepted into a group of females and young. All sexually mature females living in the group mate with this male, and soon after mating, he leaves the group. The period of rearing offspring is confined to the time of maximum abundance of food, in particular, to the time of fruit ripening. Females after 74-77 days of pregnancy give birth 3-7; an average of 5 cubs in dens, which they equip in well-protected cozy tree hollows. At this time, the female leaves her social group. Here, in the nest, newborn babies will stay until they can walk and climb trees.

Newborns are very helpless: they are hairless, blind and weigh only 75-80 g. The eyes of babies open at the age of about 10 days. At 24 days old, noses can walk and focus their eyes. Young people are able to climb at 26 days and completely switch to solid food at 4 months. At five to six weeks of age, the female and her young return to their family group. Females often make whimpering sounds to keep their young close to them during the weaning process. Mothers continue to nurse the young until they are finally weaned at about 4 months of age. Young females reach sexual or reproductive maturity at an average of 2 years, and males begin to participate in breeding at about three years of age.

The South American nosy is protected by the Sites III Convention in Uruguay, but the main threats to this species are human encroachment into their habitats and hunting. Ten subspecies of Nasua nasua are currently recognized and described: N. n. boliviensis Cabrera, 1956. N. n. candace Tomas, 1912. N. n. dorsalis Grey, 1866. N. n. manium: Tomas, 1912. N. n. montana: Tschudi, 1845. N. n. nasua: Linnseus, 1766. N. n. quichua: Tomas, 1901. N. n. solitaria: Schinz, 1821. N. n. spadicea: Olfers, 1818. N. n. vittata: Tschudi, 1845.

To warn the group of danger, females make barking sounds. And in order to keep the cubs near her, the female uses whimpering sounds. Life expectancy: In nature, 7-8 years. The maximum life span in captivity has reached 17 years and 8 months.

EUROPEAN NATURALISTS, who first saw the noses, identified almost 30 species of these animals on the basis of coat color and behavior, but modern taxonomists have reduced this number to 3. This is not surprising - the behavior and morphology of the noses are really extremely variable, even females and males behave so different that they can be mistaken for different types. These differences mainly relate to the social behavior of the coats: males lead a solitary lifestyle, while females live in well-organized groups - "clans". The behavioral relationships among the noses are very complex and include cooperation, reminiscent of the socialization of primates; for example, clan members often clean each other, care for other people's cubs, and jointly drive off predators.

The nose is easily recognizable by its long mobile muzzle, the tip of which extends far beyond the lower jaw. Inside this long "nose" there are many sensitive receptors, thanks to which the animal distinguishes odors. Countless muscles give the nose a special flexibility, which allows noses to explore various depressions and grope for prey in them. They are active during the day, spending a lot of time combing the forest undergrowth and litter in search of food, picking up leaves and hastily looking for invertebrates or fruits. Although they inhabit some dry regions, such as the southwestern United States, they are more common in tropical forests.

NOSUH CLAN MEMBERSHIP What animals are legitimate members of the NOSUH clan? It can be assumed that clans are formed on the basis of consanguinity, but genetic research show that in fact they also include some unrelated individuals. Large-scale field studies conducted in Panama have shown that these unrelated coats are most often the targets of aggression from other animals. They are pushed to the periphery common territory clan, where there is a high risk of becoming a victim of a predator. They have to pay a high price for sociality. But the final analysis showed that it is still more profitable for the nosukhas to remain in the clan and receive some benefits from this, for example, access to food, than to leave it and be left alone. Solitary males and social females

AND SOCIAL BEHAVIOR In nosoha, the process of resettlement proceeds unusually: females rarely leave the clan in which they were born, while males separate from it at the beginning of the third year of life, but they are in no hurry to leave their native area and continue to use it. They can live close to where they were born, and at the same time minimize competition for the females of their clan. Territories of single males can overlap by 72%; neighbors are often relatives. They practically do not protect their sites, with the exception of places where there is a lot of food. So, fruit-bearing trees can provoke short-term aggressive behavior. Territories of clans consisting of females and their immature descendants can overlap by 66%, and only the core of the territory is used exclusively by this clan. Risk of extinction of animals in an isolated population

CONSERVATION IN NATURE Many species of noses are not yet threatened with extinction - some of them are even classified as common animals. However, this is not to say that there is no cause for concern. One of the little-studied subspecies of the coat, Nasua nark a nclsoni (possibly an independent species), living on the island of Cozumel in Mexico, is threatened with destruction due to the rapidly developing industry and tourism, and the mountain coat (Nasuclla olivacca), whose range is limited to inaccessible highland areas in the Andes of western Venezuela, Colombia and Ecuador, has been found to be highly sensitive to deforestation and human land use. They are currently classified as species of uncertain status by the IUCN (Insufficient information.)

The name coati or coatimundi is borrowed from the language of the Tupian Indians. The prefix "coati" means "belt" and "tim" means "nose".

area: South American nosoha is found in tropical regions of South America: from Colombia and Venezuela to Uruguay, northern Argentina, it is also found in Ecuador.

Description: The head is narrow with a slightly upward elongated and very flexible nose. The ears are small and rounded, with white rims on the inside. The fur is short, thick and fluffy. The tail is long, used for balance when moving. On the tail are light yellowish rings, alternating with rings of black or brown.
The South American nosoha has short and powerful paws. The ankles are very mobile, thanks to which the animals can climb down from the tree, both the front and the back end of the body. The claws on the fingers are long, the soles are bare. Thanks to strong clawed paws, nosuha successfully uses them to dig out insect larvae from under rotten logs.
The fangs are very sharp, and the molars and premolars have high and sharp edges.
Dental formula - i3/3, c1/1, p4/4, m2/2, total 40 teeth.

Color: The South American nosoha is characterized by wide color variability, not only within the range, but even among babies from the same litter.
Usually the body color varies from orange or reddish to dark brown. The muzzle is usually colored uniform brown or black. Pale, lighter spots are located above, below and behind the eyes.
The neck is yellowish. Feet are dark brown to black. The tail is two-colored, the rings are sometimes faintly visible.

The size: Body length - 73-136 cm (average 104.5 cm). Tail length - 32-69 cm. Height at withers 30 cm.

The weight: 3-6 kg (average 4.5 kg).

Lifespan: In nature 7-8 years. The maximum life span in captivity has reached 17 years and 8 months.

Voice: Females use barking vocalizations to alert their clan members to the presence of danger. They also make whimpering sounds to keep the young close to them during the weaning process.

Habitat: From shrublands to primary evergreen rainforests.
Nosukh can be found in lowland forests, wooded river areas, dense bushes and rocky areas. Due to human influence, they currently prefer secondary forests and forest edges. On the eastern and western slopes of the Andes mountains, they are found up to 2500 meters above sea level.

Enemies: Jaguars, cougars, ocelots, jaguarundis, as well as large birds of prey, boas. Persecuted by man for meat.

Food: South American noses are primarily omnivores and usually seek out fruits and invertebrates. They eat eggs, beetle larvae and other insects, scorpions, centipedes, spiders, ants, termites, lizards, small mammals, rodents, and even carrion when available to them.
They can be found in landfills, where they scour human garbage and select everything edible from it. Sometimes South American noses eat chickens from local farmers.

Behavior: Usually active during the day. Animals spend most of their active time foraging, and at night they sleep on trees, which also serve to equip the den and give birth to offspring.
When threatened on the ground, the noses run to the trees; when predators threaten on a tree, they easily run to the end of the branch of one tree, and then jump to the lower branch on the same or even another tree.
An analysis of the structure of the eyes of the South American coaty showed that they contain a special layer, which indicates that their daytime activities evolved from a nocturnal ancestor. In addition, the nose has been found to have color vision. Unlike kinkajou ( Potos flavus), the South American nosoha demonstrates the ability to distinguish between shades of colors.
Nosuhi are good climbers and swimmers. On the ground, they walk leisurely, although they can gallop for short distances. Their average speed of movement is approximately 1 m/s.
The anal glands have a special arrangement, and they are unique among Carnivora. They are a glandular area located along the upper edge of the anus, containing a series of bags that open with four or five slits on the sides. The fatty secretion secreted from these glands is used to mark the territory.

social structure: Female South American Nosoha live in groups of 4-20 individuals, sometimes up to 30 animals. Such a group includes several sexually mature females, the rest of the members are their immature cubs. These groups are very mobile, as the nosoha move a lot in search of food. Males lead a solitary life and only during the mating season join the family groups of females. Shortly after mating, they leave the group.
Each family group has its own territory, which is usually about 1 km in diameter. Home lots of different groups may partially overlap. South American coats in such groups participate in social grooming, and are more protected from enemies than single individuals.

reproduction: In the mating season, one male is accepted into the group of females and young. All sexually mature females living in the group mate with him.
The period of growing offspring is timed to the time of fruit ripening.

Season/breeding period: October-March, young people are born in April-June.

Puberty: In females at 2 years, in males - about 3 years.

Pregnancy: 74-77 days.

Offspring: In a litter, a South American nosukha usually has 3-7 (average 5) cubs.
The female gives birth to her offspring in a den, which she equips in isolated hollows of trees, for which time she leaves her social group.
Newborn cubs are helpless: they have no hair, they are blind and weigh only 75-80 grams. The eyes open at about 10 days. At the age of 24 days, young coats can already walk and focus their eyes. At 26 days, the cubs are able to climb, they switch to thick food at the age of 4 months.
When the cubs are five to six weeks old, the female returns to her family group.

Benefit / harm to humans: South American nosy helps control the population of some types of harmful insects. They (as prey) provide food for a number of predators, and are probably important in dispersing the seeds of some plant species.
Rough noses occasionally cause damage while harvesting fruit, and have also been known to attack poultry.

Population/conservation status: In Uruguay, South American coats are protected by Appendix III of the CITES Convention.
The main threats to this species are: intrusion into its habitats (clearing for the mining industry, extraction of timber, etc.) and hunting.

Ten subspecies are currently recognized: Nasua nasua boliviensis, Nasua nasua candace, Nasua nasua dorsalis, Nasua nasua manium, Nasua nasua montana, Nasua nasua nasua, Nasua nasua quichua, Nasua solitaria, Nasua nasua spadicea, Nasua nasua vittata.



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