--- title: "Kinkajou (Potos flavus) | AnimalTracks.wiki" description: "A nocturnal canopy climber that twists 180 degrees between pelvis and head, can hang by its tail and reaches nectar with a 13 cm tongue." image: "https://animaltracks.wiki/images/animals/kinkajou-1.webp" published: "2026-10-11" updated: "2026-10-11" --- # Kinkajou (*Potos flavus*) > **Status**: Checked against 5 sources, listed under Sources below. > **Tagline**: A nocturnal canopy climber that twists 180 degrees between pelvis and head, can hang by its tail and reaches nectar with a 13 cm tongue. > **Soundtrack Vibe**: Jazz-Funk, Soul & Lounge Fusion // Hiatus Kaiyote, "Building a Ladder" > **Soundtrack Links**: [Spotify](https://open.spotify.com/track/4bEEnNjno6EL9S4MkiYBSz) > **Vibe Match**: A kinkajou can hang by the tip of its tail, then turn its body and climb back up its own tail. Hiatus Kaiyote's Building a Ladder climbs the same way, its chords twisting back on themselves as Nai Palm's voice rises over them. ## Biological Superpowers & Stats - **Taxonomy**: *Potos flavus* - **Danger Level**: Low - **Conservation Status**: Least Concern ([IUCN Red List](https://doi.org/10.2305/iucn.uk.2016-1.rlts.t41679a45215631.en)) - **Superpower**: Rotates 180 degrees between its pelvis and head - **Habitat**: Tropical forests from southern Mexico to southern Brazil - **Diet**: Mostly fruit and nectar, with rare eggs, hatchlings, insects and small vertebrates - **Tags**: mammal, arboreal, frugivore, nocturnal, pollinator ## Natural History & Behavior ## Twisting Through the Canopy A kinkajou can rotate its body 180 degrees between its pelvis (hips) and its head. That extreme spinal flexibility helps it work along tree limbs to reach food at the tips of branches. By rotating its hind ankles, it can also climb down a trunk headfirst. > **Tail-climb trick** > Kinkajous can hang by the tip of their strong tail, then turn their body in such a way that they can climb back up their own tail. Kinkajous and binturongs are the only two carnivores with a prehensile tail, which is a tail that can grip. ## Monkey Look, Raccoon Family Kinkajous look a bit like monkeys and are often called primates. They are not. They are carnivores in the family Procyonidae, along with raccoons, coatis, ringtails and olingos. A kinkajou weighs 1.4 to 4.5 kilograms and is 42 to 76 centimeters long, with a tail of 40 to 57 centimeters. It lives in forests from southern Mexico to southern Brazil. It is strictly nocturnal (active at night) and arboreal (tree-living). By day it sleeps in a hollow or a crook of a tree. ## A Sweet Tooth With a Long Tongue The name kinkajou comes from a word meaning "honey bear", and kinkajous raid beehives. A 13 cm tongue can reach inside flowers and hives, and short, dense fur gives natural protection from bee stings. As a kinkajou drinks nectar, pollen sticks to its face and smears off at the next flower. Most of its diet is fruit and nectar. Several studies suggest figs can make up as much as half of it. In feeding trials on captive kinkajous, food took 2.5 hours on average to pass through the gut, which is quick for an animal that eats mostly plants. ## Long Nights, Long Lives The San Diego Zoo gives an average lifespan of 20 years. AnAge, a database of animal lifespans, lists a maximum of 38.4 years in captivity. They screech and bark all around the forest, earning another nickname: la llorona, Spanish for "the crying woman". At night they set out to forage, and before sunrise they are back at a safe resting spot. ## Frequently Asked Questions ### Do kinkajous make good pets? No. The San Diego Zoo says they are not tame, have a painful bite and can damage a home at night, when they are most active. *(Source: [San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance]())* ### What eats a kinkajou? Harpy eagles and Isidor's eagles have been seen eating them, and jaguars occasionally do. Animal Diversity Web names humans as the main predator. *(Source: [Animal Diversity Web, University of Michigan]())* ### How many babies does a kinkajou have at once? Usually one, and two are rare. Gestation lasts 100 to 120 days, and the baby's eyes open after one or two weeks. *(Source: [San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance]())* ## Sources 1. [Helgen, Kays & Schipper (2016). Potos flavus. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2016: e.T41679A45215631.]() 2. [Kinkajou. San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance.]() 3. [Potos flavus (kinkajou). Animal Diversity Web, University of Michigan.]() 4. [Lambert et al. (2014). Binturong (Arctictis binturong) and Kinkajou (Potos flavus) Digestive Strategy: Implications for Interpreting Frugivory in Carnivora and Primates. PLoS ONE.]() 5. [AnAge entry for Potos flavus. AnAge: The Animal Ageing and Longevity Database, Build 15, Human Ageing Genomic Resources.]() *Published October 11, 2026. Last updated October 11, 2026.* ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Article", "@id": "https://animaltracks.wiki/animals/kinkajou/#article", "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://animaltracks.wiki/#website" }, "headline": "Kinkajou (Potos flavus) | AnimalTracks.wiki", "description": "A nocturnal canopy climber that twists 180 degrees between pelvis and head, can hang by its tail and reaches nectar with a 13 cm tongue.", "image": [ "https://animaltracks.wiki/images/animals/kinkajou-1.webp" ], "datePublished": "2026-10-11", "dateModified": "2026-10-11", "author": [ { "@type": "Organization", "name": "AnimalTracks.wiki Editorial Team", "url": "https://animaltracks.wiki" } ], "publisher": { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://animaltracks.wiki/#organization", "name": "AnimalTracks.wiki", "url": "https://animaltracks.wiki", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://animaltracks.wiki/icon-512.png" } }, "mainEntityOfPage": "https://animaltracks.wiki/animals/kinkajou/", "citation": [ { "@type": "ScholarlyArticle", "name": "Potos flavus. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2016: e.T41679A45215631", "url": "https://doi.org/10.2305/iucn.uk.2016-1.rlts.t41679a45215631.en", "author": "Helgen, Kays & Schipper", "datePublished": "2016", "isPartOf": { "@type": "Periodical", "name": "The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species" }, "identifier": "doi:10.2305/iucn.uk.2016-1.rlts.t41679a45215631.en" }, { "@type": "CreativeWork", "name": "Kinkajou", "url": "https://animals.sandiegozoo.org/animals/kinkajou", "publisher": { "@type": "Organization", "name": "San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance" } }, { "@type": "CreativeWork", "name": "Potos flavus (kinkajou)", "url": "https://animaldiversity.org/accounts/Potos_flavus/", "publisher": { "@type": "Organization", "name": "Animal Diversity Web, University of Michigan" } }, { "@type": "ScholarlyArticle", "name": "Binturong (Arctictis binturong) and Kinkajou (Potos flavus) Digestive Strategy: Implications for Interpreting Frugivory in Carnivora and Primates", "url": "https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0105415", "author": "Lambert et al.", "datePublished": "2014", "isPartOf": { "@type": "Periodical", "name": "PLoS ONE" }, "identifier": "doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0105415" }, { "@type": "CreativeWork", "name": "AnAge entry for Potos flavus", "url": "https://genomics.senescence.info/species/entry.php?species=Potos_flavus", "publisher": { "@type": "Organization", "name": "AnAge: The Animal Ageing and Longevity Database, Build 15, Human Ageing Genomic Resources" } } ], "about": { "@type": "Taxon", "name": "Kinkajou", "scientificName": "Potos flavus", "description": "Rotates 180 degrees between its pelvis and head" } }, { "@type": "FAQPage", "@id": "https://animaltracks.wiki/animals/kinkajou/#faq", "mainEntity": [ { "@type": "Question", "name": "Do kinkajous make good pets?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "No. The San Diego Zoo says they are not tame, have a painful bite and can damage a home at night, when they are most active.", "citation": { "@type": "CreativeWork", "name": "Kinkajou", "url": "https://animals.sandiegozoo.org/animals/kinkajou", "publisher": { "@type": "Organization", "name": "San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance" } } } }, { "@type": "Question", "name": "What eats a kinkajou?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "Harpy eagles and Isidor's eagles have been seen eating them, and jaguars occasionally do. Animal Diversity Web names humans as the main predator.", "citation": { "@type": "CreativeWork", "name": "Potos flavus (kinkajou)", "url": "https://animaldiversity.org/accounts/Potos_flavus/", "publisher": { "@type": "Organization", "name": "Animal Diversity Web, University of Michigan" } } } }, { "@type": "Question", "name": "How many babies does a kinkajou have at once?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "Usually one, and two are rare. Gestation lasts 100 to 120 days, and the baby's eyes open after one or two weeks.", "citation": { "@type": "CreativeWork", "name": "Kinkajou", "url": "https://animals.sandiegozoo.org/animals/kinkajou", "publisher": { "@type": "Organization", "name": "San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance" } } } } ] }, { "@type": "MusicRecording", "name": "Building a Ladder", "byArtist": { "@type": "MusicGroup", "name": "Hiatus Kaiyote" }, "genre": "Jazz-Funk, Soul & Lounge Fusion", "url": "https://open.spotify.com/track/4bEEnNjno6EL9S4MkiYBSz" } ] } ```