ID the Coon Before the Shot

You are standing at the base of a water oak at midnight. The dog is chopping. You shine the light up through the canopy and see a pair of eyes glowing back at you. Now what? Shooting at glowing eyes in a tree is not hunting — it is a guess with a loaded gun. This lesson makes the identification automatic before any finger ever reaches the trigger.

Quick recall

Quick recall from Working Behind a Hound — at what point in the arrival sequence does the gun come up?

Quick recall from Working Behind a Hound — at what point in the arrival sequence does the gun come up?

After positive animal identification — never before As soon as eye shine is visible in the tree Immediately after praising the dog, before shining the tree

Check answer

How to shine a tree

Technique matters. A poorly aimed light misses the animal or creates glare that blocks the view.

• Start low, work up. Begin at the base of the canopy and slowly sweep upward, covering each major limb. A raccoon may be close to the trunk on a main limb, not in the very top.
• Angle the light. Move around the base to change your angle. Eye shine that disappears from one position may appear clearly from another.
• Give it time. A nervous animal may be tucked behind a limb or den hole. Shine for at least 30 seconds before declaring the tree empty.
• Use your brightest light. A weak headlamp may not produce eye-shine return from a dense canopy. Most coon hunters carry a dedicated handheld spotlight for the tree shine.

The why Why eye-shine happens

Eye shine is produced by the tapetum lucidum — a reflective layer behind the retina that amplifies available light for nocturnal vision. When a flashlight or spotlight hits the eye directly, that layer bounces light back toward the source. Different animals have differently structured tapeta, which is why the color and intensity of shine vary by species. The color is also affected by the angle of the light, the animal’s pupil size at that moment, and the distance — so use color as one cue, not the only cue.

The raccoon’s signature

A raccoon in a tree presents a cluster of cues that, taken together, are unmistakable:

• Eye shine: bright yellow-white to yellowish-green, widely spaced for the animal’s face size.
• The mask: the black facial mask is visible as a dark band across the face between and below the eyes — a distinctive pattern unlike any other Piedmont mammal.
• Body silhouette: chunky, rounded body mass behind the eyes; a ringed tail may be visible hanging from the limb.
• Posture: raccoons often grip a limb with all four feet and look down at the dog, or press against the trunk on a crotch limb.
• Size: adult raccoons range from the size of a large house cat to a small dog (10–25 lbs in the Piedmont). In the tree, the body mass should be clearly visible behind the eyes.

The common look-alikes

Opossum (Virginia opossum)

The opossum is the most common non-target found in coonhound trees.

• Eye shine: red or orange, smaller return than a raccoon.
• Eyes: smaller and set closer together on a narrow, triangular face; no mask.
• Body: narrow, elongated, pale-grey or whitish coloring; the distinctive naked, scaly tail may be visible.
• Behavior: often freezes and does not move; may hang from the tail.
• Size: roughly cat-sized; less body mass behind the eyes than a raccoon.

Opossums are furbearers in SC with their own season. If your coonhound trees one and the season allows, it may be a legal harvest — but it must be positively identified as an opossum, not shot because “the dog was on something.”

Great Horned Owl and other large owls

Owls are more common in treed-coon trees than most new hunters expect.

• Eye shine: red or orange-yellow, forward-facing large pupils.
• Profile: round, wide head; no body mass below the eye level; wing outlines visible; often sitting on a horizontal limb.
• No mammal mass: the animal behind the eyes is narrow from neck to body — there is no rounded belly mass like a coon or opossum.
• Sound: an owl may make soft sounds; the dog may bark at it just as hard as at a raccoon.

Owls are non-game protected birds. Never shoot an owl. If you see an owl profile, call the dog off and move on.

House Cat (domestic or feral)

House cats and feral cats climb well and a coonhound will tree them.

• Eye shine: green or yellow, typically brighter and more reflective than other animals at the same distance.
• Profile: pointed triangular ears, small rounded head; a cat is notably smaller and lighter than an adult raccoon.
• Posture: often hunched tightly on a limb; may hiss audibly.
• No mask, no ringed tail.

Domestic cats are property; feral cats are unprotected but are not legal game in a raccoon season. Either way, do not shoot a cat. Call the dog off.

Side-by-side: raccoon vs. look-alikes

Raccoon — yellow wide, black mask, chunky Opossum — orange-red, narrow face, slim Owl — large round pupils, no body mass Cat — green eyes, pointed ears, small

Tell them apart — mixed scenarios

These are intentionally mixed — switching between animals is harder than one at a time, but that’s exactly the kind of discrimination you need in a dark tree.

Knowledge check

You shine a tree and see two eyes with bright yellow-white shine, widely spaced, with a dark band visible across the face between the eyes. A chunky body mass is visible on the limb. What is it?

You shine a tree and see two eyes with bright yellow-white shine, widely spaced, with a dark band visible across the face between the eyes. A chunky body mass is visible on the limb. What is it?

Raccoon — take the shot if conditions allow Opossum — check the season House cat — call the dog off

Check answer

Knowledge check

You shine the tree and see two large, forward-facing eyes with an orange-yellow glow. There is no obvious body mass below the eyes — just a wide round head and what appear to be feather outlines. What do you do?

You shine the tree and see two large, forward-facing eyes with an orange-yellow glow. There is no obvious body mass below the eyes — just a wide round head and what appear to be feather outlines. What do you do?

Do not shoot — this is an owl, a protected non-game bird Shoot — the dog is treed and any animal in the tree is fair game Wait for the mask to appear — it might be a coon in an odd position

Check answer

Knowledge check

Your dog trees hard. You shine and see orange-red eye shine, a narrow triangular face, and a slim pale body on a low limb. No black mask. What is the legal call in a raccoon-only season?

Your dog trees hard. You shine and see orange-red eye shine, a narrow triangular face, and a slim pale body on a low limb. No black mask. What is the legal call in a raccoon-only season?

Do not shoot — this is an opossum, not a raccoon Shoot it — opossums and raccoons are in the same season Shine longer — the mask might appear from a different angle

Check answer

Take it to the woods

Before you hunt, build your eye-shine vocabulary.

Pre-hunt ID prep and tree-shine discipline

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Reset

• Review the four eye-shine signatures (raccoon, opossum, owl, cat) before you hunt.
• Bring a dedicated handheld spotlight — headlamp alone may not produce full eye-shine return in dense canopy.
• Practice the shine technique: start low, work up, change angle.
• ⚠ Safety Commit out loud to the rule: gun does not come up until I can see mask AND body mass.
• Before the hunt, agree with your party: anyone can call a hold if the ID is uncertain.
• Verify the current raccoon and opossum season dates with SCDNR before you hunt. Verify current SCDNR regulations — seasons change yearly.

Sources

• Survival Freedom — Identifying Animal Eyes at Night: https://survivalfreedom.com/identifying-animal-eyes-at-night-with-eye-shine-chart/
• Realtree — Tips for Identifying Glowing Eyes in Darkness: https://realtree.com/the-realblog-with-stephanie-mallory/tips-for-identifying-the-animal-behind-the-pair-of-glowing-eyes
• AnimalHow.com — Nocturnal Animals with Glowing Eyes: https://animalhow.com/glowing-animal-eyes-night/
• SC Code 50-11-710, Night hunting and weapon rules: https://law.justia.com/codes/south-carolina/title-50/chapter-11/section-50-11-710/
• SCDNR Hunting Regulations (verify current raccoon and opossum seasons): https://www.dnr.sc.gov/regulations.html