Who’s that masked creature making all that racket? The raccoons must be looting the trash again. Like most New Yorkers, this stripy-tailed, masked bandit (Procyon lotor)  is adaptable, resourceful, and always on the lookout for a free meal. 

 

Abundant in all 5 boroughs, raccoons are well equipped to survive in the urban jungle. In addition to being able to climb, dig, and swim, they have thumb-like digits on their front paws that allow them to grab, twist, pull, and tear.