Welcome friends to installment 5 of the Critter Cafe.

Just a reminder that there is no such thing as "off topic" in here. Wherever the thread meanders is clearly where it was meant to go.

I really enjoy hosting this thread. It is always a pleasure to chat with critter people!

First! Even though I am currently critterless.

---

Janice

I am also without, but could I interest you in a little tiffin?

---

I know that beating egg whites poses no problem....I know from experience that a swift wrist action can make almost anything stand up stiffly.

Sorry, didn't know it would be that big. :-)

OK, try again here... Hey ES99

---

PROUD MEMBER OF Team Starfire World BOINC

What a wonderful start to the new Critter Cafe. Thank you all!

As for those who claim to be without critters, take my advice...
"If you feed them, they will come."

I am also without, but could I interest you in a little tiffin?

Why Mrs. Miggins, you must be psychic!
Eric returned recently from four days away and we did, in fact, enjoy a little tiffin upon his return!

Here's a few more a bit older...

---

PROUD MEMBER OF Team Starfire World BOINC

Just to update you, while Eric was away I amused myself by working on training Rufus and Artemus to approach me. Artemus is definitely the most social of the clan. He comes consistently up to my feet now and he has generalized this behavior to Eric. Last night Artemus put a little muddy paw print on Eric's shoe and he left a darling little nose print there as well. I'm pretty sure that if I left my back door open and called him, Artemus would run right into the house... not that I really WANT a baby raccoon running all over my kitchen.

Rufus is still the most dominant sibling. He continues to snarl at and roll poor Artemus at every opportunity, but Artemus has vastly surpassed Rufus in raccoon-human social skills training. Izzy remains coy and Spirit remains downright elusive.

Just to update you, while Eric was away I amused myself by working on training Rufus and Artemus to approach me. Artemus is definitely the most social of the clan. He comes consistently up to my feet now and he has generalized this behavior to Eric. Last night Artemus put a little muddy paw print on Eric's shoe and he left a darling little nose print there as well. I'm pretty sure that if I left my back door open and called him, Artemus would run right into the house... not that I really WANT a baby raccoon running all over my kitchen.

Rufus is still the most dominant sibling. He continues to snarl at and roll poor Artemus at every opportunity, but Artemus has vastly surpassed Rufus in raccoon-human social skills training. Izzy remains coy and Spirit remains downright elusive.

I love hearing about the raccoons. Thank you for the update!

Steve

---

Warning, addicted to SETI crunching!
Crunching as a member of GPU Users Group.
GPUUG Website

Just to update you, while Eric was away I amused myself by working on training Rufus and Artemus to approach me. Artemus is definitely the most social of the clan. He comes consistently up to my feet now and he has generalized this behavior to Eric. Last night Artemus put a little muddy paw print on Eric's shoe and he left a darling little nose print there as well. I'm pretty sure that if I left my back door open and called him, Artemus would run right into the house... not that I really WANT a baby raccoon running all over my kitchen.

Rufus is still the most dominant sibling. He continues to snarl at and roll poor Artemus at every opportunity, but Artemus has vastly surpassed Rufus in raccoon-human social skills training. Izzy remains coy and Spirit remains downright elusive.

Spirits can be that way. ;)

---

Janice

Just to update you, while Eric was away I amused myself by working on training Rufus and Artemus to approach me. Artemus is definitely the most social of the clan. He comes consistently up to my feet now and he has generalized this behavior to Eric. Last night Artemus put a little muddy paw print on Eric's shoe and he left a darling little nose print there as well. I'm pretty sure that if I left my back door open and called him, Artemus would run right into the house... not that I really WANT a baby raccoon running all over my kitchen.

Rufus is still the most dominant sibling. He continues to snarl at and roll poor Artemus at every opportunity, but Artemus has vastly surpassed Rufus in raccoon-human social skills training. Izzy remains coy and Spirit remains downright elusive.

My, I haven't been in here for awhile. Looks Great Mrs. K.!

Angela, it almost sounds like they/(with your human intervention) are breeding almost a certain domesticity with each generation. Don't know though, just MHO.

---

...
BETTER THE WORLD ~ PAY IT FORWARD
...

An interesting thought Karen, but in my opinion that is not what is going on.

The dominant mama raccoon in our backyard used to be Old Threesie, until she passed away. Old Threesie had a really people-friendly temperament much like Artemus does in this litter. Yet all of Old Threesie's larger litters showed a range of raccoon temperaments much like Interloper Mama's litters do.

We gave Interloper Mama her name because she was a "sneak in the back gate" human-shy raccoon who came around when Old Threesie wasn't looking. Interloper Mama's temperament is much like Izzy's. Yet all of her litters so far have had a wide range of baby temperaments.

The primary working hypothesis I have right now (and I am, afterall, the Jane Goodall of raccoons!!!) is that a range of temperaments in larger litters is highly adaptive for the species.

In every large litter there is typically a bold-aggressive one. Raccoons who fit this profile include Rufus, Cilantro, Mask and Bravesy (my avatar picture - one of Old Threesie's babies years ago.)

There is typically a slightly less aggressive raccoon who is rather people-friendly. Raccoons who fit this profile include Old Threesie, Wednesday, Artemus and my beloved Runtsy (my profile picture and a baby from the same litter as Bravesy.)

There is often a shy but observable raccoon. Interloper Mama, Tweedle-Dee from Interloper Mama's litter last year and Izzy from this year's litter seem to share this behavioral profile. Arthur, a lone male, is much like them as well.

There also seems to typically be a very shy baby. Little Cat A showed this temperament last year; Spirit shows it this year.

Old Threesie and Interloper Mama have had very different temperaments, yet the composition of their litters shows the same range of temperaments. Although my sample size is small and highly localized (my backyard!), I cannot help but hypothesize that birthing a range of temperaments each generation is somehow adaptive for the species. If the environmental conditions favor a mean, bold, nasty, aggressive raccoon - that is the baby most likely to survive and perpetuate the species. If the environmental conditions favor a reserved, shy temperament - that is the baby most likely to survive and perpetuate the species. If the environmental conditions change, favoring one temperament extreme over the other, having a range of temperaments across litters (despite the temperaments of the parents) ensures that there will be raccoons that survive, despite the environmental changes.

It is also possible that this range of temperaments is somehow adaptive if the Mama Raccoon doesn't survive. If the Mama Raccoon passes away after the babies are old enough to leave the nest, the most aggressive baby goes out and finds food, and then the more shy raccoons follow their leader/mama substitute and eat. Several years ago Little Orphan Adrian and Little Orphan Adrian II demonstrated this behavior.

Another theory, I suppose, is that the range of temperaments could simply be an artifact of being born in litters. When all the babies are very young, the most aggressive infant raccoon is most likely to find a nipple regularly. He/she then becomes larger. The least aggressive infant raccoon is least likely to find a nipple and is consequently a smaller raccoon. Then when the babies are old enough to leave the den and follow their mama around, their size influences their behavior outside of the den.

I don't really know. I suppose I will never really know for sure. The hypotheses above are simply based on observations of my little backyard friends over the years. We should get Miep (Carola) to weigh in on this subject, as she is actually a biologist and I am simply a Crazy Raccoon Lady.

Gotta love science though!!!

Angela, it almost sounds like they/(with your human intervention) are breeding almost a certain domesticity with each generation. Don't know though, just MHO.

---

PRR #5550 4-4-4-4

What the?!?! It looks like it traded legs with a grasshopper and got cheated out of a butt!

I believe it is a pygmy jerboa, right Dune?

Good morning girls and guys.

Why does everybody believe being a biologist makes you an expert on zoology and behavioural biology? :) For the record my area of expertise is microbiology and molecular biology. What I know about other subjects is what remains of the lectures I heard some 17 years past and survived the post-exam memory formatting. :)

So Angela having observed the critters for the past years is much more an expert on raccoons than your average scientist - unless you find a zoologist who just did his thesis on raccoons ;)

Evolutionary biology is also debatable - we tend to think higher adaptability enhances species survival success, but nobody has been around long enough to prove it.

I had a quick scout for raccoon papers but only found parasite related ones - and an article on 'Feral Wallabys in the Peak District' Anybody run into a kangaroo in the Buxton region recently? :)

---

Carola
-------
I'm multilingual - I can misunderstand people in several languages!

Scientists can argue about almost anything! ;)

---

Carola
-------
I'm multilingual - I can misunderstand people in several languages!