I walk over a pedestrian bridge in Farmers Branch for the second time in four days and for the second time I smell a skunk. The odor seems to emanate from the creek below the bridge. I hope there’s not a dead skunk down there.
According to Wikipedia, skunks are North and South American mammals. While related to polecats and other members of the weasel family, skunks have as their closest Old World relatives the stink badgers. The animals are known for their ability to spray a liquid with a strong, unpleasant smell. Different species of skunk vary in appearance from black-and-white to brown, cream or ginger colored, but all have warning coloration.
Etymology
The word "skunk" is an Americanism from the 1630s, the Massachusetts reflex of proto-Algonquian squunck, from Proto-Algonquian */šeka:kwa/, from */šek-/ "to urinate" + */-a:kw/ "fox." "Skunk" has historic use as an insult, attested from 1841. In 1634, a skunk was described in “The Jesuit Relations:”
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 which 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.
In Southern United States dialect, the term "polecat" is sometimes used as a colloquial nickname for a skunk.
Types of skunks
According to Elanor Dean’s article “Skunks” for the April 2017 newsletter of the Texas Wildlife Association, Texas is home to six different species or types of skunks. The Striped Skunk, Hooded Skunk, two species of Spotted Skunk and two species of Hog-nosed Skunk. While their markings differ between several spots and stripes, two thick stripes or one thick stripe, they are all black and white in color and have similar adaptations. By far, the most common skunk is the Striped Skunk. Striped skunks are found throughout Texas and the United States and even further north into Canada.
Physical description
Skunks weigh between three to 10 pounds, depending on the species and where they live. Skunks that live in the northern parts of their range weigh more because they have more fat to stay warm in the colder temperatures. Their body length is 15-30 inches with their tail accounting for over one-third of their total length. Male skunks are generally larger than females. Skunks have short, powerful legs and long front claws that are adapted for digging. Skunks do not have a very good sense of vision, but they are nocturnal, so they do not need to see well since they are more active at night.
According to Wikipedia, 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 back and tail, two thinner stripes or a series of white spots and broken stripes — in the case of the spotted skunk. Some also have stripes on their legs. Skunks have five toes on the front paws and four toes on the back paws.
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.
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.
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. Mother skunks are known to teach this behavior to their young. In addition, in California, skunks dig up yellow-jacket — small hornet — nests in summer, after the compacted soil under oak trees dries out and cracks open, which allows the yellow-jackets to build their nests underground.
Behavior
Skunks are 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. Males and females occupy overlapping home ranges through the greater part of the year, typically 0.77 to 1.54 square mile for females and up to 7.7 square miles for males.
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. 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 10 feet away, making them vulnerable to death by road traffic. They are short-lived; their lifespan in the wild can reach seven years, with most living only up to a year. In captivity, they may live for up to 10 years.
Reproduction
Skunks mate in early spring and are polygnous, meaning that successful males mate with more than one female. Before giving birth — usually in May — the female excavates a den to house her litter of four to seven kits. They are placental, with a gestation period of about 66 days.
When born, skunk kits are blind, deaf, and covered in a soft layer of fur. About three weeks after birth, their eyes open. The kits are weaned about two months after birth, but generally stay with their mother until they are ready to mate, at about one year of age.
The mother is protective of her kits, spraying at any sign of danger. The male plays no part in raising the young.
Defense
According to Elanor Dean’s article “Skunks” for the April 2017 newsletter of the Texas Wildlife Association, many animals are camouflaged in color in order to blend in with their environment, but skunks have a color pattern known as aposematic coloration. This bright black and white striped color pattern is a warning to predators that they are dangerous. This warning coloration is their first defense against predators. While skunks are known for defending themselves with a stinky spray, this is actually one of the last things they do during a predator encounter. First, a skunk will make hissing and grunting sounds while stomping both feet toward a predator. If this method does not work, then the skunk will turn around, fluff its tail, and wave it around in warning. Finally, if none of these methods work, then the skunk will resort to spraying as a final defense.
Spray
Skunks are notorious for their anal scent glands, which they can use as a defensive weapon. 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, which have an offensive odor. A skunk's spray is powerful enough to ward off bears and other potential attackers. Muscles located next to the scent glands allow them to spray with a high degree of accuracy, as far as 10 feet. The spray can also cause irritation and even temporary blindness and is sufficiently powerful to be detected by a human nose up to 3.5 miles downwind.
Skunks are reluctant to use this weapon, as they carry just enough of the chemical for five or six uses — about 15 cc — and require some 10 days to produce another supply. 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.
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, which is the skunk's only regular predator. Owls do not have a good sense of smell, so they are unaffected by the powerful odor caused by a skunk’s spray. In one case, the remains of 57 striped skunks were found in a single great horned owl nest.
Skunks are common in suburban areas. Frequent encounters with dogs and other domestic animals and the release of the odor when a skunk is run over have led to many myths about the removal of skunk odor. Due to the chemical composition of the spray, most of these household remedies are ineffective. The Humane Society of the United States recommends treating dogs using a mixture of diluted hydrogen peroxide (3%), baking soda and dishwashing liquid.
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