South American Coati

The South American coati (Nasua nasua), also called the coatimundi, ring-tailed coati or brown-nosed coati, is a member of the raccoon family which has been seen multiple times in the wild but is not believed to have become established outside its native range.

Native Range
The South American coati is native to northern South America. Its native range runs throughout Columbia, Venezuela, Guyana, Suriname, French Guyana, Brazil, Ecuador, northern Peru, most of Bolivia Bolivia, throughout Paraguay and in north-east Argentina. [1]

Europe
The South American coati has been sighted sighted several times in south Cumbria in the United Kingdom ([2]) from 2003 to 2007. [3] No sightings have been made since 2007, though young coati sightings had been reported before 2007 and so it is possible a small breeding population exists, or at least that the extinct population may have bred. [4]

Pathways and Introduction
The South American coati was first seen in the wild in the United Kingdom in 2003 or 2004. It is thought these coatis were escapees from zoological parks. [3]

Impacts
The escapee South American coati populations are believed to be too small to have any negative effect, if they are still present at all. Should the species one day become established, the may have a similar effect to the closely-related common raccoon in its invasive range. [3/5]

Control and Removal Methods
No control or removal methods are in place for the South American coati.