I had a neighbor who used to enjoy feeding a tribe of local raccoons. Each on had its own personality, and the group had many complex interactions. Each year the raccoons would come back, with adults bringing new young and the previous year's young growing up and coming back with their own.

I was surprised to see how well they got along with cats. Some of the adult cats would take a swipe after becoming jealous over food, and the raccoons would back away. Of course with their claws and need sharp teeth the raccoons could have made mince meat out of the cats.

But the raccoons did hate and fight a possum that would stop by looking for scraps. I'm not sure why the difference, but they were mortal enemies.

Here's an article from the United States Department of Agriculture. This is the first quarter, more will follow.

Raccoons (Procyon lotor) are common throughout California. They are medium sized animals 12 - 35+ lbs. and 20 - 40 inches long, including a bushy tail with 4 to 7 black rings. The fur has a salt and pepper appearance with the black mask marking on a whitish face characteristic of the species. The tracks of raccoons are very distinctive. The hind foot is long, narrow, and rests flat on the ground like those of a bear. The front paw is hand-like, with toes that are long and well separated. This permits the use of the front paws with almost the facility of a money's hands.

Raccoons breed mainly in February and March, but mating may occur from December through June. The gestation period is about 63 days. Most litters are born in April or May, but some late-breeding females may not give birth until June, July, or August. Raccoons produce one litter per year. The average litter size is 3 to 5 young. The offspring are weaned between 2 and 4 months and usually stay with the female until the following spring. Yearling females do not always breed, but adult females normally breed every year, especially if food is plentiful.

The diet of raccoons is extremely diverse. They will eat fruit, berries, grain, eggs, poultry, vegetables, nuts, mollusks, fish, insects, rodents, carrion, pet food, and garbage. Individual animals may learn to use specialized foods such as poultry, fruit crops, small livestock, or garbage by watching other raccoons. Contrary to popular myth, raccoons do not always wash their food before eating, although the frequently play with their food in water.

Raccoons are nocturnal or night-time active animals. Urban raccoon populations are frequently underestimated because people selfdom see them traveling during the daytime. They are also territorial, particularly the males. Adult males may occupy area of 3 to 20 square miles. Females have a much smaller territory of 1 to 6 square miles. Raccoons den up in hollow trees, drain pipes, homes and buildings, under decks and storage buildings, brush piles, and abandoned burrows.