Researchers from the Institute of Forest Protection and Hunting of Mendel University’s Faculty of Forestry and Wood Science are conducting a major project focusing on the northern raccoon (Procyon lotor), a species native to North America that was introduced to the Czech Republic by humans in the 1930’s.
It is the first comprehensive research of its kind in Europe, prompted by concerns that the northern raccoon could be an invasive threat to the biodiversity of the Czech landscape, as it feeds on protected species of animals, including amphibians, birds nesting both on the ground and in trees, and other small vertebrates. In addition to its food requirements, research on the invasive species is also focused on habitat preference, population potential, and desirable methods of controlling the population.
These studies are being conducted in two locations in the Czech Republic where the raccoon’s occurrence is the most intense: the Chropyňský luh area, where it appeared about 30 years ago, and the Doupovské hory in the Karlovy Vary region.
“In recent years, however, we have also registered a significant spread of the raccoon northwards, to the area of the Království nature reserve, Litovelský Pomoraví and the Šumperk region,” said Ondřej Mikulka from the Institute of Forest Protection and Hunting. “Lastly, the south of Prostějov region is also becoming an important hotspot, and all available data clearly show that the raccoon will spread to other areas as well.” He added that several individual raccoons have also been registered in the city of Brno.
A small number of raccoons in Moravia and Doupov have been equipped with telemetric collars. “We will have relevant data at the end of this year, but we can already say that this is a unique monitoring project within Europe. For example, partial data indicate possible differences in the sizes of home ranges of males and females, regular visits to amphibian pools, but also that the raccoon has no problem wandering into cities,” Mikulka noted.
The invasive raccoon poses great risk to native fauna, especially to species protected due to endangerment, as it has virtually no natural enemies in domestic conditions and outperforms local wildlife. Experiments from around the world suggest that the raccoon is a significant predator of bird nests, amphibians, reptiles and small mammals.
“We are investigating how the raccoon contributes to artificial nest predation,” explained Mikulka. “We placed quail eggs in a nest we created on the ground with a photo trap and monitored their activity. Wild pigs were the most frequent visitors and consumers, but immediately followed by the raccoon. Moreover, the raccoon takes significantly less time to find a nest than other native species, which suggests that it will be a significant predator.”
Moreover, Mikulka explained that the researchers intend to continue the study with similar nests placed in trees, in which they also expect raccoons to be the dominant hunter. “In fact, it has the advantage over domestic species of climbing trees and having extremely dexterous forelimbs with five toes. This is one of the reasons why it is so successful despite being non-native. It is unparalleled among mammals in Europe.”
The raccoon’s extraordinary success in its non-native environment is also due to its considerable resourcefulness and cognitive abilities. “The raccoon clearly exhibits displays of intelligence, as shown by data obtained from photo traps and video recordings,” Mikulka said. “With colleagues in the Doupov area, we have documented cases where an individual caught in a trap was able to open the device and escape on its own. Older and more experienced individuals can even remove the bait without activating the trap’s trigger mechanism.”
Despite the invasiveness of the species, regulating the raccoon population is very difficult in practice. The Ministry of the Environment and the Ministry of Agriculture currently leave regulation to the hunting public on a voluntary basis all year round. There is not yet a conceptual and unified solution to effectively address the ecological risks associated with this invasive species, but that is also the focus of ongoing research.
The research team expects the final results in 2026. They will be published through peer-reviewed publications, applied outputs and recommendations for government and affected stakeholders.
