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Striped Skunk
(Mephitis mephitis) This
gorgeous stinker was discovered by the side of the road, muddy and drenched in
a culvert shortly after an evening thunderstorm. Most likely, she had been washed
out of a natal den by the torrential downpour. Her finders deposited her in the
bed of their pick-up truck and rumbled home with her amidst bottles, brush, and
other refuse. The next morning, the call came in to me to pick up the little orphan
and I sped off to retrieve the nearly three-week-old skunk. Upon arrival, I discovered
the frightened little one had managed to wiggle her way into the winching mechanism
in back of the truck. After slow and careful maneuvering of a disconnected garden
hose, the black and white tyke made her exit and was quickly scooped up to safety.
Despite all her arduous adventures so early in life, this little girl grew into
a healthy, spunky skunk. She was released just in time to spend her first Thanksgiving
out in the wild, thankful in her own way, I’m sure, for gaining a second chance
at life free-roaming the Texas landscape, vanquishing all the delicious rodents
and insects in her path. |
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Cozy
and safe in a bed of fleece blankets, the orphaned skunk snoozes while sucking
her toes, like a human baby sucking its thumb.
Photo
courtesy Dove Key Ranch Wildlife Rehabilitation |
Why love skunks?:
From the moment that I held my first baby skunk, I was hooked! This glinting-eyed,
chubby, fuzzy cherub instantly stole my heart. And, as the little guy grew and
developed his own unique personality, I fell even deeper in love with him and
his black and white kin. Similar to humans, dolphins, corvids, and other animals
with high levels of memory and problem-solving capabilities, skunks are distinct
individuals that display their own blend of behavioural traits: some are hyper
and domineering, others are affectionate clowns, still others are serious detectives
of their surroundings. The only two things that all skunks seem to have in common
are their curiosity and obstinance. I think if skunks had opposable thumbs and
better vision, they would be giving us a run for our money! Temperaments aren’t
the only variable between individual skunks: each mephitid has its own unique
black and white patterning. Even within a single litter, shiny coats can vary
from almost all white to almost all black and every speckling and striping in
between. (photo)
If their aesthetic
appeal fails to override their “smell factor” in your estimation, let me assure
you: they don’t want to spray any more than you want to smell them spray! Skunk
spray is an oily yellowish to dark orange liquid chock full of thiols (hence the
garlic-y aroma), which is projected from nipples attached to a pair of anal glands
in the business end of the fuzzy stinker. Although the noxious secretion seems
like the ideal weapon against all violations to mephitid peace, skunk anal glands
can only store a limited amount of the powerful juice. Once empty, their anal
sacs may take days to refill, leaving the striped marauder without its most notable
and powerful defense. For this reason, skunks are loath to use their valuable
spray unless they feel they are in imminent danger. If you leave them alone, they’ll
more than happily leave you alone. However, if you are bold enough to encroach
on their space, you’ll get more than fair notice before the odiferous cocktail
starts to fly because, in their reluctance to waste their precious resource, mephitids
have become the masters of bluff. If his foreboding black and white patterning
have failed to ward you off, the skunk will raise his tail, a proud flag of warning;
stomp his front feet, like the most defiant tantruming toddler the human race
has to offer; and drag his squat self backwards, ending the display with a flourish
of his rear from which you may be unlucky enough to see crimson nipples sited
straight for you. As long as the stocky fellow is convinced you’re paying him
heed, he’ll fervently continue this unintentionally comic performance, pulling
himself in reverse with each reiteration until he judges his distance from you
is adequate for a quick spin and dash for safety.
Even in the errant cases
when skunk spray may infiltrate your world, these striped wonders more than make
up for any foul aromas with their unmatched gift for “pest” control. Voles, mice,
rats, and other rodents are their favorites, while wasps, spiders, cockroaches,
scorpions, grubs, slugs, caterpillars, grasshoppers, and crop-destroying vermin
are not far behind on the dietary hit list. They may even contribute to de-stinkifying
your yard by ridding your property of another mephitid delicacy: stinkbugs. Skunks
are one of the few mammals to munch these repulsive insects, patiently rolling
the foul-smelling beetle across the ground until all the distasteful glandular
secretions have been wiped clean and the protein packet is cleared for consumption.
Strong forelegs, paws widened by partial webbing between the digits, and tough
claws also aid these stout predators in tenaciously unearthing gophers and moles.
And to cap off the mephitid menu of “pests,” add snakes, including rattlesnakes,
copperheads, and water moccasins. Few native mammals can safely catch, let alone
relish, poisonous snakes as much as skunks do. |
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Fully
grown and well-practiced in foraging for insects, rodents, and other natural foods,
the female skunk is returned to the wild and immediately starts exploring her
new home.
Photo
courtesy Dove Key Ranch Wildlife Rehabilitation |
So, if you fear snakes;
appreciate intelligent, charismatic beings from the non-human animal realm; are
amused by bombastic threat displays from pudgy, cranky little mammals; find a
graceful beauty in the shiny-coated black and white wild spirits that slip through
the crepuscular hours; want the mice out of your barn or furry excavators out
of your cattle field for free; and/or wonder at the evolution of a creature that
shoots noxious fluids from its anus as a defense mechanism, then you, too, should
LOVE skunks! And maybe you will agree with my assertion that nothing can compare
to the sight of a wild skunk, foraging in the early morning dew: the seemingly
improbable, yet perfect combination of a striking, sleek and efficient predator
and a comical, waddling, play-loving goof.
©
Bonnie Wroblewski
http://www.dovekeywildlife.org
December 2, 2010
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