There are about 25 million species of raccoons all around the world! They are starting to evolve and change their features but why? Most raccoons live in forests near running water, most live in dens built inside trees. But, there are some fuzzy creatures that could be living right in your own backyard! But why have they become so friendly? Some raccoons in the suburbs have started to go into early domestication!
No, it is not just your brain tricking you there is a chance the black and white animal eating your trash could be becoming cuter! According to the website Reset era,” raccoons living in urban areas are physically changing,” Some examples of this is them getting shorter snouts and more floppy ears. This reminds you of something, yes you guessed it dogs! Dogs are known to be some of the smartest and friendliest animals. The raccoons living in this area could possibly be getting acclimated to humans which makes them less aggressive! This could also lead to them having a better chance of survival if they are not aggressive.
Now, you may be wondering what domestication is. Domestication is the process of adapting animals. According to National Geographic, “Domesticated animals can look very different from their wild ancestors.” This means that if these raccoons keep evolving they could end up looking so much different than they do now. And they have already started, like how their ears and snouts are changing. They have been interacting with humans for thousands of years, so this may have started a long time ago!
As we know they are changing, but what is the main reason why? The most common place they are seeing this change is in the suburbs. There is a reason for this, in the suburbs it is common for people to try to interact with these animals. People feed them, build them homes and even touch them. Over time they became accustomed to this lifestyle causing them to change. This created an easy way for them to get fed which reduced the need for them to hunt and be aggressive. Following this it made it so that they did not fight and attack each other for food.
So in conclusion, what we see as aggressive animals could become our future pets. Next time you see the fuzzy trash bandit outside or even in your backyard just think to yourself. Are these fascinating animals really changing or is it just our eyes tricking us?