15 Animals That Look Like Raccoons And What They Have in Common

Some animals have more iconic appearances than others — like poison dart frogs, zebras, and cheetahs. Another member of this infamous family: a raccoon. With a bandit-like black mask around their eyes, raccoons can be immediately recognizable on the street or your porch in the daylight. 

However, quick glances, wooded areas, the dark of night, and fast animal reactions might cloud your vision. Is what you saw truly a raccoon, or what is something different?

Keep reading to discover the 15 animals that look like, or share similar behaviors with, a raccoon.

Coatimundi

From the genus nasua comes the white-nosed coati, or the coatimundis. It’s actually part of the raccoon family, but not all have a ringed tail. Coati tails are thinner and less furry than their raccoon cousins as well. The coati has an upturned snout that the raccoon does not and a lighter-colored coat.

Coati are approximately the same size as their raccoon cousins and also spend most of their time in trees. You’re less likely to see a coati on the Eastern seaboard, though. Coati live in more tropical regions.

Japanese Raccoon Dog (Tanuki)

If you’re in Japan, you may see one of two endemic wild dog breeds and mistake it for a raccoon. The Japanese raccoon dog, as well as the common raccoon dog, live in Japan’s forests. Like raccoons, they’re nocturnal and forage for their food. 

Olinguito

Living in Ecuador and Columbia is the newly-discovered and large-eyed olinguito. It looks similar to a raccoon with its body shape, fur, and hands. As part of the raccoon family, the olinguito has a few other cousins that look similar in size and shape.

As for behavior, the olinguito is also nocturnal like the raccoon and will hunt voraciously for its food.

Red Panda

Masked and adorable, the red panda looks like a softer, red-and-cream version of a raccoon. Scientists and researchers first placed the red panda in the raccoon family for their skulls, teeth, and ringed tails, but realized the animals needed to be in a family of their own. 

Dr. Sabrina Kong, DVM has a special place in her heart for red pandas. She’s a senior veterinary contributor at WeLoveDoodles and spoke to A-Z Animals about the similarities she sees between red pandas and raccoons from a professional perspective and a personal interest.

“First off, both have this ‘masked bandit’ look going on with those striking facial markings. Then there’s their love for climbing. Red pandas and raccoons are both arboreal, meaning they’re pretty nifty when scaling trees. It’s like watching skilled acrobats in a forest circus,” she said.

“Their diet? Well, both aren’t picky eaters,” Dr. Kong affirmed. “Raccoons are the ultimate omnivores, eating just about anything, while red pandas, though primarily bamboo munchers, won’t say no to a fruit, egg, or insect here and there. It’s like they both have this ‘foodie explorer’ badge in the animal kingdom.”

Finally, Dr. Kong talked about animal anatomy. “Let’s not forget those paws – both have semi-retractable claws and a pseudo-thumb (an extended wrist bone for red pandas), making them the ultimate grabbers. Whether it’s a branch or a tasty snack, they’ve got the grip to match their sly looks.”

Kinkajou

The kinkajou looks very similar to both the coati and the raccoon — and it should, as it’s in the same family! However, the kinkajou has a honey color to its fur rather than darker brown or gray (which is what raccoons have). Their ringed tails, like those of the coati, are much less fluffy than a raccoon’s. Still, kinkajou live in trees, hunt at night, and have similar body structures to raccoons.

Ringtail

If you see a ringed tail, there’s no guarantee it’s a raccoon. It could have been a ringtail, or ringtail cat if you live in arid regions of the United States. This creature has a highly-coveted coat of fur and tail; it’s even been legally trapped for it! The ringtail looks like a cross between a fox, a cat, and a raccoon — it has a plump and bushy ringed tail but a snouted face, small eyes, and whiskers like both cats and foxes.

Olingos

A bit bigger than olinguitos (as you may be able to tell by the name), olingos have a more bushy ringed tail than their smaller counterparts and a slender, albeit larger, body. They’ll grow to be about three pounds large and are missing the iconic black eye mask of a raccoon, but are still part of the Procyonidae family.

European Badger

Badgers can often get mistaken for raccoons — especially the European badger with its similar colored fur and unique black-and-white mask. Badgers, like raccoons, are sized similarly to a house cat and are nocturnal. They do most of their hunting and night and sleep during the day.

Cacomistle

The solitary, nocturnal cacomistle has a ringed tail and a masked face like the raccoon. It’s also one of the final members of the raccoon family. While not every cacomistle has a ringed tail or masked face, many come in colorings similar to that of a raccoon. Some people, like miners, in South America keep cacomistles as pets or mousers. 

Skunks

Both skunks and raccoons are black and white outdoor household pests with markings on their faces. However, raccoons are larger on average than skunks and don’t have the defense mechanism their smelly counterparts do. At night, though, skunks and raccoons can look similar rooting through your trash.

Burmese Ferret-Badger

Badgers often get mistaken for raccoons based on their size, striped face, and behaviors. The Burmese ferret-badger has a similar-looking mask to the raccoon that lives in forests and hunts at night. It’s considerably smaller than a raccoon, reaching only four or five pounds at full maturity.

American Badger

Similar to the European badger, the American badger has a raccoon-like coat, weighs about the same as a normal raccoon, and opportunistically hunts at night. They mostly stay in the northern parts of the western, central, and eastern United States — but have also made homes for themselves in British Columbia.

Maine Coon Cat

If the only glance you catch of an animal on your porch is its fluffy tail, you may think you’ve seen a raccoon when it’s simply your neighbor’s Maine coon cat with a striped tail. Maine coons don’t typically have tails with clear rings; instead, it’s a striped gray and darker gray appearance. This breed of feline is larger than many other domesticated cats so, despite raccoons only being the size of a house cat, you may mistake a Maine coon for a more aggressive creature than it is. 

Wolverine

In some regions of the United States, you may think you’ve seen a raccoon flit across your yard when in actuality, you’ve seen a wolverine. Especially at night or at a distance, wolverines have a similar shape and size with a fluffy tail. It’s not a ringed tail, nor does the wolverine have mask-like markings on its face, but it’s a dark-colored nocturnal hunter undeterred by human presence. 

Fox

No, a fox and a raccoon don’t look the same in appearance, but they might look similar to you if it’s a dark night, the outside lights aren’t on, and you’ve just woken up to a creature eating out of your garbage cans. Like raccoons, foxes have urbanized themselves in cities and towns near their habitats. It’s easier to find food this way.

The easiest color fox to mistake for a raccoon is a fox with a standard cross-black morph. However, gray morphs may also look similar to bleary-eyed homeowners wandering what’s rooting around in their trash.

The photo featured at the top of this post is © iStock.com/SergeiM