This action funds an NSF Postdoctoral Research Fellowship in Biology for FY 2025. The fellowship supports research and training of the fellow that will contribute to biology in innovative ways. Cities are dynamic ecosystems where wildlife must navigate diverse environmental conditions shaped by human activity and land use. This project will investigate how urbanization influences the diet, physiology, and behavior of raccoons (Procyon lotor) across different neighborhoods in the San Francisco Bay Area. By examining how individual animals respond to environmental heterogeneity within cities, this research will provide new insights into the biological mechanisms that drive behavioral variation in urban wildlife. Understanding these processes is critical for mitigating negative human-wildlife interactions and fostering coexistence in urban environments. The fellow will engage with local schools to integrate participatory science into the research process, develop educational resources on urban wildlife, and communicate findings through science outreach initiatives. This work will generate actionable knowledge that benefits urban biodiversity conservation while promoting public engagement with urban ecosystems. This project will examine functional links among the diet, gut microbiome, infection status, and behavior of raccoons in urban and nonurban areas with different social and ecological characteristics. By integrating molecular, ecological, and behavioral approaches, the f