Descrição anatômica da língua do mão-pelada (Procyon cancrivorus)

Abstract

Th e cra b -ea tin g ra cco o n is a ma mma l o f th eProcyonidae family of rare anatomical descriptions about it.Th is p aper aimed to a nato mica lly describ e the crab-eatingraccoon ́s tongue, providing data on future clinical and surgicalstu dies, b esid es co n trib utin g to th e ca rn ivo res co mpa redanatomy. Two tongues were used after formaldehyde fixation.Crab-eating raccoon ́s tongue is, in average, 9.5cm in length;it is elongated and with a less evident median sulcus. It presentslyssa, four pairs of vallate papillae in the root and one pair inthe body, several fungiform and conical papillae in the body and root and less developed filiform papillae in the apex, mainly.Other three papillae pairs, taken as vallates, were observed inthe lateral area of the tongue root. The crab-eating raccoon ́stongue presents some anatomical aspects which are similar toth e d og ́s, as th e lyssa and th e d istribution of pa pilae, b utfoliates, which were not observed.