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On July 14,<\/span> internet history was made. After capturing video of a cryptid-like raccoon<\/a> with a hunched spine and stumpy tail in Seattle’s Ballard neighborhood, Kiana Hall uploaded the footage to her Instagram<\/a> account, referring to the sprightly little furball as \u201cJimothy.\u201d (Later, asked in the comments where this name had come from, Hall replied that the animal \u201clooked like a Jimothy to me.\u201d)<\/p>\n Within days, the clip had been viewed millions of times<\/a>, spawning memes, fan art, plushie toys, and more. City leaders proclaimed a \u201cJimothy Summer<\/a>\u201d in honor of the local mascot, and next week, the Seattle Mariners will host a \u201cJimothy Night<\/a>\u201d at T-Mobile Park, with ticketholders receiving Jimothy T-shirts. Another Seattelite, Ben Trammell, produced a year-old backyard video of Jimothy as a tiny baby raccoon<\/a> with his mother and siblings, adding to his lore and celebrity status.<\/p>\n Jimothy\u2019s congenital spine condition\u2014the exact kind remains unverified\u2014has endeared him to people the world over. But it has also raised questions about whether he\u2019s thriving in his urban habitat. Even without the disadvantage of an unusual skeleton (in Trammell\u2019s footage, you can see Jimothy struggle with his footing on a fence), wild raccoons have a life expectancy of just two to three years<\/a>\u2014and we know from the baby footage that he\u2019s at least a year old. Are his admirers setting themselves up for heartbreak in the near future?<\/p>\n \u201cWithout examining the animal, we simply don’t know how much his spinal condition affects his daily function,\u201d says Rebecca Calisi-Rodr\u00edguez, a wildlife biologist at UC Davis who studies animal behavior and stress. She adds that not every congenital abnormality substantially reduces an animal\u2019s odds of survival or quality of life. \u201cThe fact that Jimothy appears mobile, alert, and successful at navigating an urban environment suggests he has adapted well enough to meet the challenges of everyday life,\u201d Calisi-Rodr\u00edguez says, \u201cbut that\u2019s very different from saying we can predict how long he’ll live.\u201d<\/p>\n It\u2019s likely that Jimothy made it this far in part due to the sophisticated intellect<\/a> of raccoons. The species\u2019 maternal habits also must have played a role. As many as half of young kits<\/a> die before leaving the den where they were born, but those who do make it out are safeguarded by their mothers<\/a> long after they\u2019ve weaned, unlike the young of many small mammal species.<\/p>\n According to Jessica Castillo-Vardaro, whose lab at San Jos\u00e9 State University is devoted to molecular ecology and urban wildlife, Jimothy is likely already past the \u201cmost vulnerable\u201d period of his life. Now, she says, \u201che doesn’t have many predators, and his greatest risk is being hit by a car.\u201d While his physical form may diminish his chances against an attacking dog or coyote, Castillo-Vardaro says, Jimothy has \u201cprobably figured out how to avoid those situations, otherwise he wouldn’t still be here.\u201d<\/p>\n Humans\u2019 strong affection for animals that become internet stars can often run up against the harsh realities of life in the wild, particularly in species with much shorter lifespans than ours. Castillo-Vardaro points to popular livestreams of bird nests that show predators swooping in to eat eggs or hatchlings. \u201cIt’s sad, but it is a part of nature, and we shouldn’t shy away from it,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n Factor in the harmful ways content creators and influencers use animals for clout\u2014including by staging \u201crescues\u201d and intrusive selfies, or even attempting to domesticate them as pets\u2014and the cause for concern ratchets up. Indeed, the wildlife biologists who spoke to WIRED agree that Jimothy\u2019s fame could be the biggest threat to his well-being right now.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n