From en.wikipedia.org:
[Common name of mammals in the family Mephitidae] [Other uses] [Polecat]
[small=yes] [date=August 2025]
{{Paraphyletic group | auto = yes | name = Skunks | image = Striped Skunk.jpg
| image_caption = Striped skunks | parent = Mephitidae | includes =
_Conepatus_<br> _Mephitis_<br> _Spilogale_<br> †_Brachyprotoma_ | excludes =
_Mydaus_<br> †_Palaeomephitis_<br> †_Promephitis_ | range_map = skunk genera
ranges.png | range_map_caption = Skunk genera ranges }} SKUNKS are mammals in
the family Mephitidae. They are known for their ability to spray a liquid
with a strong, unpleasant scent from their anal glands. Different species of
skunk vary in appearance from black-and-white to brown, cream or ginger
colored, but all have warning coloration.
While related to polecats and other members of the weasel family, skunks have
as their closest relatives the Old World stink badgers.[1]
** Taxonomy
[List of mephitids] In alphabetical order, the living species of skunks
are:[2]
- FAMILY MEPHITIDAE
- Genus: _Conepatus_
- _Conepatus chinga_ – Molina's hog-nosed skunk
- _Conepatus humboldtii_ – Humboldt's hog-nosed skunk
- _Conepatus leuconotus_ – American hog-nosed skunk
- _Conepatus semistriatus_ – striped hog-nosed skunk
- Genus: _Mephitis_
- _Mephitis macroura_ – hooded skunk
- _Mephitis mephitis_ – striped skunk
- Genus: _Spilogale_
- _Spilogale angustifrons_ – southern spotted skunk
- _Spilogale gracilis_ – western spotted skunk
- _Spilogale putorius_ – eastern spotted skunk
- _Spilogale pygmaea_ – pygmy spotted skunk
** Terminology
The word _skunk_ is dated from the 1630s, adapted from a southern New England
Algonquian language (probably Abenaki) [alg], from Proto-Algonquian
[alg-x-proto], from [alg-x-proto] 'to urinate' + [alg-x-proto] 'fox'.[3]
_Skunk_ has historic use as an insult, attested from 1841.[4]
In 1634, a skunk was described in _The Jesuit Relations_: {{Blockquote|The
other is a low animal, about the size of a little dog or cat. I mention it
here, not on account of its excellence, but to make of it a symbol of sin. I
have seen three or four of them. It has black fur, quite beautiful and
shining; and has upon its back two perfectly white stripes, which join near
the neck and tail, making an oval that adds greatly to their grace. The tail
is bushy and well furnished with hair, like the tail of a Fox; it carries it
curled back like that of a Squirrel. It is more white than black; and, at the
first glance, you would say, especially when it walks, that it ought to be
called Jupiter's little dog. But it is so stinking and casts so foul an odor,
that it is unworthy of being called the dog of Pluto. No sewer ever smelled
so bad. I would not have believed it if I had not smelled it myself. Your
heart almost fails you when you approach the animal; two have been killed in
our court, and several days afterward there was such a dreadful odor
throughout our house that we could not endure it. I believe the sin smelled
by Saint Catherine de Sienne must have had the same vile odor.[5]{{efn|French:
L'autre est vn animal basset, de la grandeur des petits chiens, ou d'vn chat ;
ie luy donne place icy, non pour son excellence, mais pour en faire vn symbole
du peché ; i'en ay veu trois ou quatre. Il est d'vn poil noir assez beau et
luisant, il porte sur son dos deux rayes toutes blanches, qui se ioignans vers
le col et croche de la queuë, font une ouale qui luy donne tres belle grace ;
la queuë est touffuë et bien fournie de poil, comme la queuë d'vn Regnard, il
la porte retroussée, comme vn Escurieux, elle est plus blanche que noire :
vous diriez à l'œil notamment quand il marche, qu'il meriteroit estre nommé le
petit chien de Iupiter ; mais il est si puant, et iette vne odeur si empestée,
qu'il est indigne d'estre appellé le chien de Pluton, il n'y a voirie si
infecte ; ie ne l'aurois pas creu si ie ne l'auois senty moy mesme, le cœur
vous manque quasi quand vous en approchez. On en a tué deux dans nostre court
; plusieurs iours apres il sentoit si mal par tout nostre maison, qu'on n'en
pouuoit supporter l'odeur. Ie croy que le peché que sentit saincte Catherine
de Sienne, deuoit estre de mesme puanteur.[6]}}}}
In Southern United States dialect, the term _polecat_ is sometimes used as a
colloquial nickname for a skunk,[7] even though polecats are only distantly
related to skunks.
As a verb, _skunk_ is used to describe the act of overwhelmingly defeating an
opponent in a game or competition. _Skunk_ is also used to refer to certain
strong-smelling strains of _Cannabis_ whose smell has been compared to that of
a skunk's spray.
** Description
[date=August 2025] Skunk species vary in size from about [15.6] long and in
weight from about [1.1] (spotted skunks) to [18] (hog-nosed skunks). They
have moderately elongated bodies with relatively short, well-muscled legs and
long front claws for digging. They have five toes on each foot.
Although the most common fur color is black and white, some skunks are brown
or grey and a few are cream-colored. All skunks are striped, even from birth.
They may have a single thick stripe across the back and tail, two thinner
stripes, or a series of white spots and broken stripes (in the case of the
spotted skunk).
[diet]
** Behavior
Skunks are crepuscular and solitary animals when not breeding, though in the
colder parts of their range, they may gather in communal dens for warmth.
During the day they shelter in burrows, which they can dig with their powerful
front claws. For most of the year the normal home range for skunks is [0.5 to
2] in diameter, with males expanding during breeding season to travel [4 to 5]
per night.[8]
Skunks are not true hibernators in the winter, but do den up for extended
periods of time. However, they remain generally inactive and feed rarely,
going through a dormant stage.[9] Over winter, multiple females (as many as
12) huddle together; males often den alone. Often, the same winter den is
repeatedly used.
Although they have excellent senses of smell and hearing, they have poor
vision, being unable to see objects more than about [3] away, making them
vulnerable to death by road traffic. They are short-lived; their lifespan in
the wild can reach seven years, with an average of six years.[10][11] In
captivity, they may live for up to 10 years.<ref name="UMich"/><ref
name="PSU"/>
*** Reproduction
Skunks mate in early spring and are polygynous (that is, successful males are
uninhibited from mating with additional females).[date=August 2025]
Before giving birth (usually in May), the female excavates a den to house her
litter of four to seven kits.[date=August 2025]
Skunks are placental, with a gestation period of about 66 days.[12]
When born, skunk kits are blind and deaf, but already covered by a soft layer
of fur. About three weeks after birth, they first open their eyes; the kits
are weaned about two months after birth. They generally stay with their
mother until they are ready to mate, roughly at one year of age.[date=August
2025]
The mother is protective of her kits, spraying at any sign of danger. The
male plays no part in raising the young.[13]
*** Diet
Skunks are omnivorous, eating both plant and animal material and changing
their diets as the seasons change. They eat insects, larvae, earthworms,
grubs, rodents, lizards, salamanders, frogs, snakes, birds, moles, and eggs.
They also commonly eat berries, roots, leaves, grasses, fungi and
nuts.[date=August 2025]
In settled areas, skunks also seek garbage left by humans. Less often, skunks
may be found acting as scavengers, eating bird and rodent carcasses left by
cats or other animals. Pet owners, particularly those of cats, may experience
a skunk finding its way into a garage or basement where pet food is kept.
Skunks commonly dig holes in lawns in search of grubs and worms.[date=August
2025]
Skunks use their long claws to break apart rotting logs to find insects that
live within them. They also use those claws to help dig for insects, which
leaves behind pits, which are easy signs of foraging. The claws also help
with pinning down live and active prey.[14]
Skunks are one of the primary predators of the honeybee, relying on their
thick fur to protect them from stings. The skunk scratches at the front of
the beehive and eats the guard bees that come out to investigate.[15] Mother
skunks are known to teach this behavior to their young.
*** Spray
left Skunks are notorious for their anal scent glands, which they can use as a
defensive weapon. They are similar to, though much more developed than, the
glands found in species of the family Mustelidae. Skunks have two glands, one
on each side of the anus. These glands produce the skunk's spray, which is a
mixture of sulfur-containing chemicals such as thiols (traditionally called
mercaptans), which have an offensive odor. The thiols also make their spray
highly flammable.[16][17] A skunk's spray is powerful enough to ward off bears
and other potential attackers.[18] Muscles located next to the scent glands
allow them to spray with a high degree of accuracy, as far as [3].[19] The
spray can also cause irritation and even temporary blindness, and is
sufficiently powerful to be detected by a human nose up to 5.6 km (3.5 miles)
downwind.[20] Their chemical defense is effective, as illustrated by this
extract from Charles Darwin's 1839 book _The Voyage of the Beagle_:
{{Blockquote|We saw also a couple of _Zorrillos_, or skunks—odious animals,
which are far from uncommon. In general appearance, the _Zorrillo_ resembles
a polecat, but it is rather larger and much thicker in proportion. Conscious
of its power, it roams by day about the open plain and fears neither dog nor
man. If a dog is urged to the attack, its courage is instantly checked by a
few drops of the fetid oil, which brings on violent sickness and running at
the nose. Whatever is once polluted by it, is forever useless. Azara says
the smell can be perceived at a league distance; more than once, when entering
the harbour of Monte Video, the wind being offshore, we have perceived the
odour onboard the _Beagle_. Certain it is, that every animal most willingly
makes room for the _Zorrillo_.[21]}}
Skunks carry just enough for five or six successive sprays – about 15
cm<sup>3</sup> – and require up to ten days to produce another supply.[22]
Their bold black and white coloration makes their appearance memorable. It is
to a skunk's advantage to warn possible predators off without expending scent:
black and white aposematic warning coloration aside, threatened skunks will go
through an elaborate routine of hisses, foot-stamping, and tail-high deimatic
or threat postures before resorting to spraying. Skunks usually do not spray
other skunks, except among males in the mating season. If they fight over den
space in autumn, they do so with teeth and claws.[23]
Most predators of the Americas, such as wolves, foxes, and badgers, seldom
attack skunks, presumably out of fear of being sprayed. The exceptions are
reckless predators whose attacks fail once they are sprayed, dogs, and the
great horned owl,[24] which is the skunk's only regular predator.<ref
name=Cornell>[title=Great Horned Owl] In one case, the remains of 57 striped
skunks were found in a single great horned owl nest.<ref
name=Hunter_Carnivores>[last=Hunter][date=September 2014]
**** Mitigation
Skunks are common in suburban areas, and domestic dogs are often sprayed by
skunks. There are many misconceptions about the removal of skunk odor,
including the pervasive idea that tomato juice will neutralize the odor.
These household remedies are ineffective, and only appear to work due to
olfactory fatigue.[25] In 1993,[26] the American chemist Paul Krebaum has
developed a formula that chemically neutralizes skunk spray by changing the
odor-causing thiols into odorless acids,[27] which is endorsed by the Humane
Society of the United States for sprayed dogs.[28] It involves hydrogen
peroxide, baking soda, and liquid dish soap.
Skunk spray is composed mainly of three low-molecular-weight thiol compounds,
(_E_)-2-butene-1-thiol, 3-methyl-1-butanethiol, and 2-quinolinemethanethiol,
as well as acetate thioesters of these.[29][30][31][32][33][34] These
compounds are detectable by the human nose at concentrations of only 11.3
parts per billion.[35][36]
500px
** Relations with humans
*** Bites
It is rare for a healthy skunk to bite a human, though a tame skunk whose
scent glands have been removed (usually on behalf of those who will keep it as
a pet) may defend itself by biting. There are, however, a few recorded
incidents of skunks biting humans. Skunk bites in humans can result in
infection with the rabies virus. The Centers for Disease Control (CDC)
recorded 1,494 cases of rabies in skunks in the United States for the year
2006—about 21.5% of reported cases in all species.[37][38] Skunks in fact are
less prominent than raccoons as vectors of rabies. (However, this varies
regionally in the United States, with raccoons dominating along the Atlantic
coast and the eastern Gulf of Mexico, while skunks instead predominate
throughout the Midwest, including the western Gulf, and in California.)
*** As pets
_Mephitis mephitis_, the striped skunk, is the most social skunk and the one
most commonly kept as a pet. In the US, skunks can legally be kept as pets in
17 states.[39] When a skunk is kept as a pet, its scent glands are often
surgically removed.<ref name="PBS" />
In the UK, skunks can be kept as pets,[40] but the Animal Welfare Act 2006
made it illegal to remove their scent glands.[41]
** See also
- List of fictional musteloids
- Skunk oil
** Notes
[notelist]
** References
[Reflist]
** External links
[Skunk]
- Skunks and the management of skunk damage (see http://icwdm.org/handbook/carnivor/Skunks.asp) [url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161113235150/http://icwdm.org/handbook/carnivor/skunks.asp ]
[C.] [Authority control]
Category:Mephitidae Category:Carnivorans of Central America
Category:Carnivorans of North America Category:Carnivorans of South America
Category:Aposematic animals Category:Mammal common names