Safety note: Never handle a porcupine — quills detach on contact.
The North American Porcupine is the second-largest rodent on the continent, covered in roughly 30,000 barbed quills. A slow-moving, mostly nocturnal tree climber with a fondness for salt.
Habitat
Boreal forests, mixed woodlands, and desert shrublands
Diet
Bark, twigs, needles, and herbaceous vegetation
How common
Uncommon
Best time to see a North American Porcupine
The best time to see a North American Porcupine is March–August, when about 62% of U.S. sightings happen, based on 19,186 research-grade iNaturalist observations.
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Not certain it is a North American Porcupine? What animal is this? walks through what to check first and the lookalikes that catch people out.
Recent North American Porcupine sightings near you
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5,300+species
63national parks
50states
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