Cozumel coati
subspecies of mammal
The Cozumel coati (Nasua narica nelsoni), dwarf coati, or Cozumel Island coati, is a coati from the Mexican island of Cozumel, in the Caribbean Sea. It is in the family Procyonidae, which also includes raccoons, ringtails, olingos, and kinkajous.
Taxonomy
The Cozumel coati is a member of the genus Nasua. It was first described in 1901 and given the scientific name Nasua nelsoni by Clinton Hart Merriam, honoring naturalist Edward William Nelson. Independently, British zoologist Oldfield Thomas described the same population as Nasua thersites in 1901, a name now regarded as a synonym. Historically, Nasua nelsoni was considered a distinct species because of its markedly smaller body and skull compared to the white-nosed coati (N. narica). Early authorities recognized it as separate, with measurements showing Cozumel coatis at only 62–72% of the total length of mainland N. n. yucatanica).
The taxonomic status of the Cozumel coati remains debated. It has been recognized by some authorities as a distinct species due to its smaller body and cranial size compared to the mainland white-nosed coati and mitochondrial DNA evidence supporting significant divergence from mainland populations.
Begin with the source’s own compact description: “Cozumel coati” is subspecies of mammal. The dossier treats that line as a proposition to test through Cozumel, coati and subspecies, not as a finished interpretation.
Why this record matters
The phrase “subspecies of mammal” supplies a clear boundary for inquiry. It also exposes the unanswered questions: who defined that boundary, when it became stable and which sources sit outside it.
Datasets, specimens, observations and peer-reviewed methods provide the appropriate test for the technical claims summarized here. The source revision retrieved here is dated Aug 1, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q20907997. None of the 0 selected statements returned an explicit reference. The first chronological checks are 1901.
A general summary may omit uncertainty, sample limits or methodological disagreement that is explicit in the technical record. The lead is largely declarative, so disagreement and counter-evidence require a deliberate search beyond the opening account. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.
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This entry incorporates text from “Cozumel coati” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.