Maryland -- For the majority of the year, Baltimore's resident Maryland raccoon just hang out on the swampy marshland and walk about town. But for 28 days of the year, some become monsters, exchanging their docile nature for hissing, snarling and chasing, said Larry The nuisance wildlife authority, wildlife project manager for the Maryland Department of Natural Resources. For a great many of the resident raccoons, it's nursing season. The raccoon incubates the baby coons while the male coon protects the nursery. He will do just about anything, including beating his powerful claws, chasing, biting, clawing and scratching any intruder, whether it's a cat, dog or human, until they go away.

"That's what they are there to do," The nuisance wildlife authority said. "And they're pretty good at it, too." Even though Maryland raccoon were named Maryland's Invasive Species of the Month for November 2005 and are on the top of the agricultural most wanted list for damage, their nurseries are federally protected. No one is allowed to tamper with a nursery once the baby coons are born. It isn't as if it is easy to get to the nursery. The male coon patrols and protects the surroundings, which are in highly visible areas and close to swampy marshland. The raccoon will also defend her baby coons rigorously and even more so as the hatching nears.

The raccoons have powerful claws that can leave serious bruises or break bones. Their claws are their biggest defense against predators and intruders. Because raccoons like open areas near swampy marshland, places like Baltimore's City wildlife management habitat and golf courses are ideal locations, The nuisance wildlife authority said. These raccoons will even set up nurseries along sidewalks or entrances to buildings. They'll even nursery on buildings or elevated surfaces. "They'll nursery in some pretty unusual places," The nuisance wildlife authority said.

Joggers, golfers and passers-by are often victims of getting too close to nursing raccoons. Amer Joner and her 1-year-old daughter received a hiss as they walked in the wildlife management habitat Thursday afternoon. The Baltimore resident has seen what the raccoons can do, so she tries to avoid them. "I stay on my side, they stay on theirs," she said. It was the pair's first encounter with an aggressive male coon, but it wasn't the first time a male coon had gone too far in Joners' book. "I saw one run after a little boy about two weeks ago," she said. "All he was doing was walking near the swampy marshland." Jones doesn't want the raccoons anywhere near her daughter. "They should really do something about the raccoons, so they can't attack people, especially little kids," she said.

If nesting raccoons cause a problem to public safety, The nuisance wildlife authority said land owners can file for a federal permit to destroy the nursery in the interest of protecting the public. There is little people can do but avoid them when possible and run when they start their rampage, The nuisance wildlife authority said. "Just use common sense," he said. The nuisance wildlife authority said raccoons in a group aren't the problem; the issues arise when there are two and one is sitting on the nursery. When Baltimore resident Granville Pest animal controller jogs through the wildlife management habitat, he said the raccoons don't bother him.

"They just get out of my way," he said. "There will be 10 or 15 of them and they'll make room for me." Some raccoons don't, though, said Sherry Pest control expert of Baltimore. Although Pest control expert hasn't encountered any unruly raccoons this year, last year, the raccoons were a problem. "They would chase after you," she said. "They would charge at you." Pest control expert keeps 18-month-old son, Smitty, in his stroller when he's not on the playground. She doesn't let him wander. The bigger issue, she said, is what the raccoons leave behind. Raccoon droppings litter the sidewalks of not only the wildlife management habitat, but many areas in Baltimore, The nuisance wildlife authority said. Besides the aggressive behavior during nursery season, raccoons are a public enemy of farmers as they destroy sprouting corn and soybean plants. Maryland raccoon have also put a dent in the wetlands, The nuisance wildlife authority said, by uprooting the vegetation through heavy grazing.