Skull Morphology and the Relationship to Diet in the Raccoon Family, Procyonidae

Skull Morphology and the Relationship to Diet in the Raccoon Family, Procyonidae

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This study investigated skull and jaw morphology as it relates to diet among six species Bassaricyon (Olingo), Bassariscus (Ringtail), Nasua (Coati), Nasuella (Mountain Coati), Potos (Kinkajou), and Procyon (Raccoon) of the raccoon family, Procyonidae. Most of these species live in temperate and tropical areas of the western hemisphere. Typically, their diets are omnivorous (Olingo, Raccoon and Ringtail), insectivorous (Coatis), and frugivorous (Kinkajou). It was hypothesized that the omnivorous species that include substantial animal matter in their diet (Ringtail) would exhibit larger jaw muscles with enhanced mechanical advantage for biting and chewing. Several cranial and jaw indices were standardized and subjected to an analysis of variance to test this hypothesis. Results indicate significant correlations between the indices and preferred diets. Surprisingly, the frugivorous Kinkajou (Potos) has significantly larger jaw muscles and greater mechanical advantage at the second molars compared to the rest of the species. The insectivorous Coatis (Nasua and Nasuella) display the smallest muscles with reduced mechanical advantage. The omnivorous species Bassaricyon (Olingo), Bassariscus (Ringtail), and Procyon (Raccoon) are intermediate with medium-sized jaw muscles and biting forces at the second lower molar.