Raccoons are inquisitive and seldom pass up the opportunity to investigate an interesting smell or crevice. They probe a crack with their front feet and pull anything of interest from its hole for closer inspection. Raccoons are usually found near trees because they are adapted to life in the forest. They are agile climbers and have nimble feet, but they are flat-footed like humans and bears and are slow runners. Using their sensitive front feet, they catch prey in and around water, and use their front feet to bring food to their mouths and hold it while they eat.
Raccoons have well-developed senses of sight, hearing and smell.
Distribution and abundance Raccoons are found across most of North America. They have long been common in the eastern United States, but less so in western states. In the 1940s, a continent-wide population explosion occurred as raccoons expanded their range and increased in abundance. There were at least 15 times more raccoons in North American in the 1980s than in the 1930s. In Nebraska prior to 1940, raccoons were common only in the eastern third of the state and were relatively scarce elsewhere.