Animal identifier ยท Other mammals
Nasua narica
Oak canyons of southern Arizona and southwestern New Mexico. Bands of females and young are the usual sight. Five-toed tracks a bit like a narrow raccoon print.
What does a white-nosed coati look like?
Long snout, banded tail held up, brown body.
What do white-nosed coati tracks look like?
Raccoon-like but narrower, and a troop leaves a braid of tracks. Range is the border canyons, not a city creek.
- Five-toed tracks a bit like a narrow raccoon print
- Long claws
- Often many sets of tracks together
- Long ringed tail carried upright if seen
- A long snout
What does white-nosed coati poop look like?
Latrines in canyons, tubular, with fruit and insect parts. Do not handle droppings. Several species carry parasites that stay in the soil around a latrine.
Where you find it
Oak canyons of southern Arizona and southwestern New Mexico. Bands of females and young are the usual sight. Typical places: woods, desert. Year-round where the species lives. Tracks show best in mud, sand, and snow.
What to do next
- Watch from a distance
- Do not handle droppings
- If the animal is injured or inside a building, call a local wildlife officer
This page is a field guide, not a permit to approach wildlife. If an animal is injured, aggressive, or inside a house, call a local wildlife officer.
Animals it is confused with
- Raccoon identification
- Ringtail identification
- All animal identification pages
- Identify an animal from a photo, track, or description
Where do coatis live in the U.S.?
Southeastern Arizona and the adjacent corner of New Mexico.
How to tell a white-nosed coati from similar animals
Use the track, the dropping, and the place together. One print is not enough.
- Raccoon. Five fingers. Gray body, black mask, ringed tail.
- Ringtail. A delicate five-toed print in canyon dust. Cat-sized, with a huge ringed tail and a fox-like face.
White-nosed coati field marks
- Five-toed tracks a bit like a narrow raccoon print
- Long claws
- Often many sets of tracks together
- Long ringed tail carried upright if seen
Where the sign shows up
Oak canyons of southern Arizona and southwestern New Mexico. Bands of females and young are the usual sight. Typical places: woods, desert. Year-round where the species lives. Tracks show best in mud, sand, and snow.
Raccoon-like but narrower, and a troop leaves a braid of tracks. Range is the border canyons, not a city creek. Latrines in canyons, tubular, with fruit and insect parts.
Common questions
Where do coatis live in the U.S.?
Southeastern Arizona and the adjacent corner of New Mexico.