Subtle Skirmish between the Japanese Raccoon Dog Couple in the Mating Season in Early Spring

A monogamous pair of Japanese raccoon dogs (Nyctereutes viverrinus, family Canidae) stood side by side beside the den entrance in the defoliated secondary forest. It was their mating season in early spring even in snow country. The male in rut on the left sniffed at the rear end of the female partner on the right to examine if she was in heat. But the female got irritated and she instantly bit the male. You can hear the scolding woof, as if saying “enough is enough”. And the female sat down on the lingering snow and groomed herself. When the male yawned, the female yawned, too. Eventually, the female stood up again and stretched her back. Captured with my new trailcam at sunny dusk (around 17:00 PM) of mid-March 2025 in Japan. It was 7 degrees Celsius. The sunset time was 17:52 PM. For a full story (text in Japanese); https://sigma-nature-vlog.blogspot.com/2026/07/3.html