Raccoon Social Behavior in a Highly Urbanized Environment: A Genetic Investigation

When Darwin proposed his theory of natural selection (NS), he grappled with how sociality and the sharing of resources could evolve under such a system of individualized advancement (Darwin 1859). For decades, the field of animal behavior has conducted myriad investigations into this possible crux of NS, and has found that social associations do, in fact, benefit the individuals engaged. Sociality is thought to evolve from three main mechanisms: kin selection (Hamilton 1964), reciprocal altruism (Trivers 1971), and by-product mutualism (Connor 1986); kin selection predicts sociality between related individuals, while the other 2 theories deal with non-kin cooperation. Therefore, the first step in understanding the mechanism driving a species' social system is to examine if close associations are reserved for related individuals. It is also important to understand the mechanisms behind the social formations of species because management techniques may vary widely based on the social structure of an organism. Moreover, there is a particular impetus to know the sociality of species that exploit human dominated environs and transmit lethal zoonotic diseases. Raccoons (Procyon lotor), exemplify such a species. Raccoons are a nocturnal, semi-arboreal, mid-sized Carnivore that inhabits much of North America. They are an intelligent species (Davis 1984, review Gehrt 2003) capable of neighbor recognition (Barash 1971) and obtain their highest densities in urban environments ___________________ *210 Kottman Hall, 2021 Coffey Rd. Columbus, OH 43202. I would like to thank Dr. Stanley D. Gehrt, Dr. Suzanne Prange, and Dr. Jean Dubach for their many contributions to this project.