Northern Kinkajou
Seed-dispersing Frugivore
Basic Information
Anatomy
The kinkajou has a round head, large eyes, a short pointed snout, short limbs and a long prehensile tail. Their eyes reflect green or bright yellow against light. The long, thick tongue is highly extrudable like an aardvarrk or giraffe. The snout is dark brown to black. The claws are sharp and short.
The coat color varies throughout the body and at different times of the year. Several shades such as tawny olive, multiple colours of brown and yellowish have been reported for the upper part of the coat and the upper side of the tail, while the underparts and the lower side of the tail have been observed to be buff, tawny or brownish yellow. Some individuals have a black stripe running along the midline of the back. The color seems to become lighter from head to tail. Their fur is short, woolly and dense. Hairs are of two types: light yellowish and darker with brown tips. The darker hairs reflect light poorly relative to the lighter ones, often creating an illusion of spots and dark lines on the coat that provide natural camouflage. The tail is covered with thick fur up to the end, usually darkest towards the tip.
The northern kinkajou is distinguished from other species by its small, rounded ears, extensible tongue and prehensile tail. Most folk find they are similar enough in appearance to other breeds that many native cultures do not distinguish between the two. Compared to others, northern kinkajous are larger, have foreshortened muzzles, and lack anal scent glands, which is one of the primary reasons they make preferred companions compared to the other breeds. The kinkajou resembles neotropical monkeys in having a prehensile tail and big forward-facing eyes, but has a different dentition and heavy fur on the soles of the feet.
Dietary Needs and Habits
As a frugivore the kinkajou thrive mostly on raw fruits or easy to find fruit-like produce such as roots, shoots, nuts and seeds. Frugivores are highly dependent on the abundance and nutritional composition of fruits, which led to humans easily training these intelligent and dextrous mammals.
Additional Information
Domestication
The northern kinkajou was kept and bred in Etude as early as around 3300 NC, according to historical records. Over the generations many have lost some of their natural survival instincts that are no longer used while living in the cities. That being said, they are not fully domesticated and hundreds, if not thousands of them currently roam Etude and Stretto and keep pests under control.
Uses, Products & Exploitation
Kinkajou are used for many purposes within human cities. In Etude they're left free to roam the streets and live generally unmolested as a type of pest control. Although they mostly prefer to eat fruits, they also eat a number of larger insects native to the area and have helped lower the number of insect-borne illnesses since becoming a mainstay.
They also have an incredible sense of direction and have been trained in the past to deliver messages or small packages to specific buildings and even people. This practice has fallen out of use as more 'free' kinkajou populate the city. The trained animals are much more difficult to rely on or control in the presence of the less domesticated ones.
Another byproduct of their presence within Etude is the new flora that has become abundant since their release. As with many frugivoires, the kinkajou spread plant seeds throughout the city in their feces. In some situations this could be harmful however the city greenery has flourished with the added natural fertilizer they contribute to the lush areas where they spend their time when not searching for food.
Lifespan
6 years
Average Weight
6lbs.
Average Length
3ft. (nose to tail)
Geographic Distribution
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