What's a Coati?

Closely related to racoons, the Coati Mundi is a curious, clever, and affectionate critter. These photos were taken last week at Germany's Darmstadt Zoo. Coatis use special postures to communicate like hiding their long nose between the front paws as a sign of submission or lowering the head, baring their teeth and hopping about to signal aggresion. Coincidentally, that's also how I start a fight.

Photo credits: Joachim Mueller