The Pizote

The clever and awfully cute White Nosed Coati, locally known as the Pizote, is more than happy to use his good looks to distract you while his siblings steal your lunch. Commonly spotted in Costa Rica, Pizotes are easy to recognize by their long ringed tails, which they hold completely and unabashedly upright while walking around or foraging on the forest floor. On their other end, they boast a remarkably flexible and sensitive snout that helps them sniff out and uncover their regular diet of fruits, insects, and small vertebrates.  Proven to be quite intelligent, there has been a trend to keep Pizotes as pets, but they are much better suited to living in the wild. Witnessing their hunting method of pinning down their prey with long sharp claws before delivering a death bite to the head would hopefully lead one to choose a puppy instead. Curious and gregarious, Pizotes that have adjusted to humans in their neighborhood are not shy about begging for food and can get quite aggressive when they have a craving for what you’re eating. Of course, one look at that face and you could be forgiven for wanting to give the little guy half your sandwich.

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