Tiny kinkajou, a rainforest critter indigenous to South America, found crawling through Washington state

That’s beary suspicious.Washington officials were left scratching their heads this week when they found a mammal indigenous to the rainforest crawling along a stretch of desert.The kinkajou — also known as a honey bear — was discovered Sunday darting up a tall wooden post at a rest stop along Interstate 82 southeast of Yakima, the state Department of Transportation said on X.“Hello from our friendly Kinkajou! What’s that you say? It’s a nocturnal rainforest animal,” the DOT wrote.“Why was it at our east Selah Creek Rest Area over the wknd? We have no idea, but our friends with Dept.of Fish & Wildlife rescued him.

We don’t know if it was dropped off or escaped.”Animal experts suspect that the weasel-like critter was obtained through the illegal pet trade before being abandoned and left to fend for itself in the arid climate.At the time of its rescue, it was “very thin” and weighed only 2.5 pounds — about four pounds less than the average weight of a kinkajou, according to The Association of Zoos and Aquariums.While the full results of the young animal are still pending, officials said the kinkajou — which looks like a cross between a monkey and a tiny bear — was in fair overall health.He is recuperating at the zoo as officials look for a permanent home for the tiny beast.Kinkajous, which have prehensile tails, are carnivores that live in tropical rainforests from southern Mexico through Brazil.With sandy yellow fur, round ears and big dark eyes, they are capable of grasping objects and are often mistakenly called primates, the zoo said.“Despite their cuteness, kinkajous do not make good pets,” the zoo said.Kinkajous are not endangered but are hunted for their fur, and the illegal exotic pet trade threatens their population, according to the zoo....