New York’s record for the common raccoon runs 6,431 sightings deep, one of the heaviest tallies for any mammal in the state, and it spans the full range of New York landscapes. Ulster County leads the county list with New York County close behind, while Long Island, Gateway National Recreation Area, and Harriman State Park anchor some of the largest clusters.
A generalist with remarkable hands
A raccoon’s front paws are its living. Sensitive enough to work a crayfish out of a streambed in the dark or turn a latched lid, they let the animal eat almost anywhere, from the tidal marshes around Jamaica Bay to Finger Lakes woodlots and city parks. Acorns, berries, insects, frogs, eggs, and whatever people leave unsecured all fit the menu, which is why raccoons hold their own in Manhattan as comfortably as in farm country.
Loudest in spring, quietest in the cold
Sightings build through the year and crest from April through June, when nights turn mild and females travel with newly emerged young. Raccoons do not hibernate, but in hard winter weather, especially across northern and upland New York, they den up for days at a stretch and let the cold pass, so a January raccoon stays close to its hollow tree or culvert.
Status in New York
NatureServe ranks the common raccoon S5, Secure, in New York, and the species is native to the state. USGS NAS does not list it as nonindigenous here.
