Please welcome... Sultan - the South American Coati. The ecological police of Iquitos, Peru had given us this young male on Saturday, 11th March 2023. The new addition to Pilpintuwasi wildlife rescue and isn’t he just the cutest?
Unfortunately, they are becoming an increasingly popular pet due to the Coati's appearance (unusual and rather beautiful). The rise of pet trends is disastrous for biodiversity as it continues to fuel the illegal pet trade. Sultan, like many of our other Coatis, was surrendered by his “owner” after becoming too boisterous and wild .. after all he is a wild animal! He is roughly 3 months old, so still, a baby who would be dependable on learning skills from his mother and their band. A group of female Coatis is called a ‘Band’ - males live in solitary.
The Coati is a member of the raccoon family and has a distribution across tropical and subtropical South America ranging from Colombia and The Guianas south to Uruguay and northern Argentina. They typically live in forests (including evergreen rainforests, cloud forests, deciduous rainforests, and dry scrub forests) but are incredible at adapting to new environments and have been increasingly popular faces to be seen in areas of human development as they are successful scavengers.
Coatis feed by utilizing their long noses by poking them under rocks and into crevices in search of a snack. They also use their long claws to dig holes or tear apart rotting logs. This species is an omnivore, the diet consists of primarily fruits and invertebrates. They provide an ecological niche due to their diet, these animals affect insect populations in their range and act as seed dispersers of the fruit they consume.
The main threats to South American coatis include hunting for meat and habitat loss through deforestation. The IUCN Red List and other sources do not provide the South American coati total population size. Currently, this species is classified as Least Concern (LC) on the IUCN Red List but its numbers today are decreasing. We must protect our forests to help not only the Coati but the immense rates of biodiversity within.
Fun fact: Coati Dung Coffee produced in Peru is the most expensive coffee in the world. The excreta of the Coati is used to create this unique coffee.
