Copulatory behavior of white-nosed coatis

摘要

Little is known about the reproductive biol- ogy and mating behavior of coatis (Nasua). Coaris are social members of the Procyonidae, with adult females and subadults of both sexes living in groups of 5 to 30 animals. Males >2.5 years are solitary, and aggressively excluded from groups except during the mating season (Kaufmann, 1962; Russell, 1982; Gompper, 1995; Gompper and Decker, 1998). During the mating season, one adult male is permitted to join a group, which he defends against other males (Kaufmann, 1962). This appears to be a harem defense tactic (Eisenberg, 1981), although males appear to have no control over female movements. White-nosed coatis (Nasua narica) mate from January to April, depending on the population, with most copulations occurring within a 10-day period (Kaufmann, 1962; Gilbert, 1973; Russell, 1982). Kaufmann (1962) described mounts lasting <=3 sec, and believed that most copulations occurred at night. Sunquist and Montgomery (1973) described an arboreal copulation that lasted >=7 min.