Coatimundi are procyonids, cousin to the racoon, and live in Central and South America.
The species in the American Southwest (Texas!) and Mexico is the white-nosed coati. They're about the size of house cats, with long non-prehensile tails.
Like raccoons, they can rotate their double-jointed ankles more than 180°, meaning they can go down trees head-first & they walk on the soles of their feet (plantigrade) like humans.
They have these cool pig-like snouts that ARE prehensile (not sure if that term applies?), and can be rotated 60° to scratch itches or explore crevices for food.
One strange behavior of the coatimundi is their relationship with the balsa tree:
Coatis are known to lick the nectar from the base of the flower, transferring pollen on their long noses from one tree to another, making them a significant pollinator species.
The coati is social: they travel in small bands of 10-20, clicking and woofing to each other as they travel.
They groom each other and warn each other of threats.
The greatest threat to them is habitat destruction, but as of now they're still of least concern status by the IUCN, and efforts are underway to preserve key refuges for this amazing species and legally forbid their hunting.
