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About 5 or 6 raccoons gather each evening at dinner time in the open-air lobby of the Capitan Suizo Hotel. The hotel puts out some food for them in dog dishes. The raccoons lounge around in the lobby and on the lobby balcony in a way similar to house cats lounging around the house.As shown in this photo, they groom themselves and they do not mind people being very close to them. This girl is a tourist from France who was staying at the hotel with her family, all of whom enjoyed visiting with the raccoons in the lobby.
The Capitan Suizo Hotel has somewhat of a zoo-hotel theme, as it also has howler monkeys on its grounds. It is sometimes amusing to see the double-take of tourists who walk through the lobby and are surprised to see the raccoons.
Costa Rica has two species of raccoons, northern raccoons and crab-eating raccoons. This is a northern raccoon. They are a little more grayish in color than the crab-eating raccoons, which have a little more brownish coloration in their fur.
He looks down right friendly.
ReplyDeleteI would love to see these little racoon "pets" lounging around the hotel. It's funny how they were so easily domesticated.
ReplyDeleteI forgot to mention, the girl in the Burberry bikini looks like she's enjoying her visit with Mr. (or is it Ms.)Racoon.
ReplyDeleteWhat is remarkable is not only how domesticated the raccoons ae with people, but Tamarindo is also a very pet-friendly place. The raccoons get along just fine with dogs and cats as well.
ReplyDeleteDavid, this and the previous entry are fabulous. Such beautiful creatures and dead right, you'd not see them in the lobby of an hotel in the south of France! I'm forwarding your link to my friend in America who has them in her roof where they make an unholy racket! She loves them too and would never harm one. When I was there she trapped one (safely and kindly) and then we transported it miles away so hopefully it wouldn't come back and eat more electrical wires or whatever it was doing! Love your shot. It surprised me how relaxed this one is with a person so near.
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