Olingo

“Olingos are part of the raccoon family.“

Olingo Facts

• They possess anal scent glands which produce a pungent odor when the animal is scared. This is designed to drive enemies away. 
• They are nocturnal animals. They are active in the night and sleep in tree cavities during the day. 
• Although they are omnivores, they mostly eat fruit, especially figs. They rarely eat any meat, unless they have to. 
• They are arboreal animals, meaning they live mostly in trees and swing from branch to branch. Their tiny, slender frame makes this easy. 
• Both female and males usually have multiple partners during mating season. 
• Babies are born blind, deaf, and covered with a fine down. 

Olingo Summary

Olingos inhabit Central America and South America and rarely live in zoos or captivity. These adorable creatures are cousins of the raccoon, but unlike raccoons, they live in trees. You rarely see a wild olingo on the ground, but if you do, try not to approach it. Just like skunks, they release a horrible smelling chemical through their scent glands when they are scared. 

Scientific Name

Olingos are from Spanish-speaking South and Central America. Their name means “howler monkey” in Spanish and is often interchanged with kinkajous, an animal that closely resembles the olingo. The name refers to any member of the genus Bassaricyon, a group of arboreal mammals. 

There are four species of olingos: 

• The eastern lowland olingo (Bassaricyon alleni) 
• The western lowland olingo (Bassaricyon medius) 
• The northern olingo (Bassaricyon gabbii) 
• Olinguito (Bassaricyon neblina) 

Olingos belong to the raccoon family Procyonidae, a group of mostly omnivorous, slender animals with long tails. Other animals that belong to this family are raccoons and kinkajous.   

Evolution and History

The coati is the olingo’s closest relative; the two animals evolved separately about 10.2 million years ago. 

The species under Bassaricyon began divergence 3.5 million years ago, first with Bassaricyon neblina, and then Bassaricyon gabbii, which broke off about 1.8 million years ago. Bassaricyon medius and Bassaricyon alleni split off about 1.3 million years ago. According to research, the olingo’s ancestors established themselves in Central America shortly before the genus began to diversify into different species. 

Olingos have several physical adaptations to suit their arboreal lifestyle. They developed long hind legs and sharp claws which are great for jumping and climbing trees. Although olingos are omnivores, they have so adapted to life in the trees that they mostly eat plants and fruit, only resorting to eating insects and flesh when vegetation is lacking during the dry season. Olingos release a terrible-smelling chemical when threatened or distressed. 

Olingo Appearance

Olingos are part of the raccoon family and share some structural similarities to them. However, their bodies are built for life in the trees. They have a slender build, and their hind legs are significantly longer than their fore legs. Olingos also have long bushy tails, large round eyes, pointed muzzles, and short ears. Unlike some other arboreal species, their tails are not prehensile, which means they can’t use them like hands to grab onto branches and other things. 

Olingo feet are modified for an ideal arboreal existence. The bottoms of their feet are hairy and they have short, curved claws on their moderately flat toes. 

Most olingo species have short grayish-brown fur except olinguitos whose fur is more reddish-brown and long. Olingos have cream to yellow-colored undersides. Their tails are the same color as their body, and they have bands of darker colored fur running along it. 

Adult olingos typically grow to reach lengths of 14 to 20 inches from head to body. Their tails can grow up to 19 inches long. Olingos weigh anything between 2.6 to 3.1 pounds, about as heavy as a small bag of potatoes. 

Olingo Behavior

Olingos are nocturnal omnivores and frugivores. They are active at night when the chance of attack is low. They sleep in crevices in large trees during the day. Even though they are usually solitary animals, they spend some of their time in pairs. This may indicate that scientists need to do more research on the sociability of these animals. Otherwise, olingos are around other olingos either during mating season, or in small groups when searching for food. 

They are arboreal animals which means they live in trees. However, the range of the preferred elevation of each species differs. Olinguitos are distinguished from other species not just by their appearance, but also by the elevation which they prefer to live in. They live in the highest elevation range, from 5,000 to 9,000 feet, while the other olingos prefer to live at lower altitudes. In fact, the olinguito’s specific name neblina means fog in Spanish because they live in the cloud forests in Ecuador and Colombia.   

Olingos have anal scent glands which, like that of the skunk’s, secrete a foul-smelling chemical when they are afraid. This scent drives their enemies away. 

Olingo Diet

Ever met a predatory animal that preferred to eat fruit instead? Olingos are omnivorous and frugivorous animals. Their main diet consists of fruit, particularly figs, and they enjoy the sweet nectar of balsa trees as well. Although this animal primarily eats plants, it can eat insects and hunt birds and small mammals such as mice and other rodents. However, this only happens on rare occasions during the dry season when the olingo doesn’t have anything else to eat. 

Habitat and Population

Olingos are native to South and Central America. The western lowland olingo hails from Colombia, Panama, and Ecuador. The eastern lowland olingo is the only species that lives east of the Andes River. It inhabits the countries of Bolivia, Ecuador, Peru, Venezuela, and Brazil. The olinguito lives in Ecuador and Colombia. 

The northern olingo lives in Nicaragua, Costa Rica, and the western region of Panama. Although some people claim to have sighted these animals in other countries such as Guatemala and Honduras, there has not been enough substantial evidence backing these claims. Northern olingos look a lot like kinkajous, as well as other species. 

These animals can dwell in lowland regions at sea level and mountain regions with elevations of up to 9,000 feet. 

Even though their population is decreasing, they are classified as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 

Reproduction and Lifespan

Olingos are polygamous animals. While some animals practice polygyny wherein the male mates with several females, both male and female olingos have multiple partners during the mating season. 

We don’t know much about the reproductive mechanisms of wild olingos. They most likely breed during the dry season and their gestation period lasts 73 to 74 days. They typically give birth to only one offspring at a time. Babies are born blind, deaf, and covered with a scanty grayish-black down. They become independent around two months of age and reach sexual maturity at 21 to 24 months. 

These animals usually live about 10 years in the wild and up to 25 years in captivity. 

Predators and Threats

Olingos are arboreal animals, which gives them a survival advantage over other small mammals who live predominantly on the ground. However, this means that they become prey to larger animals who also dwell in trees. They are prey to several types of boa constrictors, wild cats like the jaguarundi and ocelot, and tayra which belong to the weasel family. 

They typically emit a foul odor from their anal scent gland when frightened or threatened. They are also jumping animals and can make a quick getaway in the trees when they are in danger. 

A major threat olingos face is loss of habitat. Human activity has resulted in almost 50% of their territory being destroyed in order to create agricultural and city areas. However, this activity has not led to their endangerment. Their population is still very much stable in the wild. 

Related Animals

• Raccoon
• Weasel
• Skunk