Striped Skunk

The English word skunk has two root words of Algonquian and Iroquoian origin, specifically seganku (Abenaki) and scangaresse (Huron). The Cree and Ojibwe word shee-gawk is the root word for Chicago, which means 'skunk-land'.

• Singular: skunk

• Plural: skunks

The striped skunk is a stoutly built, short-limbed animal with a small, conical head and a long, heavily furred tail. The feet are plantigrade with bare soles and are not as broad or flat as those of hog-nosed skunks. The forefeet are armed with five long, curved claws adapted for digging, while those on the hind feet are shorter and straighter. The color patterns of the fur vary greatly but generally consist of a black base with a white stripe extending from the head, which divides along the shoulders and continues along the flanks to the rump and tail. Some specimens have a white patch on the chest, while others bear white stripes on the outer surface of the front limbs. Brown or cream-colored mutations occasionally occur.

A wide white patch on the nape of the neck that splits into a noticeable "V" shape along the flanks contrasts with their jet-black base, which is divided by a thin white blaze down the face. Compared to southern subspecies, their fur is notably thicker, glossier, and more insulated to weather the severe winters in the north. With a weight range of 1.4 to 5.5 kg (3 to 12 lbs), the Canada skunk is roughly the size of a sturdy domestic housecat. Males are about 10% larger than females. They have an incredibly fluffy, sweeping tail, short legs, plantigrade feet (flat-footed walking, similar to bears), and a robust torso.

Surprisingly, Canada skunks can run short distances at about 16 km/h (10 mph). When they are young, they are excellent diggers and strong climbers; as adults, they climb less frequently. They have an exceptional sense of smell, excellent hearing, and are very capable swimmers, however they often stay out of deep water.

Canada skunks have a precise spraying range of 3–5 meters (10–15 feet). This oily, yellow-colored musk may be sprayed many meters away and is made up of a mixture of strongly smelling thiols (sulfur analogues of alcohols, known as "mercaptans" in older sources).

• Farting

Striped skunks are polygamous omnivores with few natural predators, save for birds of prey. While primarily an insectivore, the striped skunk is adaptable enough to incorporate other animals and even vegetable matter into its diet. The most frequently consumed insects include grasshoppers, beetles, crickets, caterpillars, other insect larvae and bees. The skunk will also consume vegetable matter, such as apples, blueberries, black cherries, ground cherries, corn and nightshade when in season. Striped skunks are known to use their sharp claws to tear apart rotting logs to find grubs, dig in the soil for insects, and pin down prey. Their practice of digging leaves small-but-noticeable pits in the ground, which can provide evidence of their presence in an area. Mammalian predators typically avoid skunks, unless they are starving. Such predators include cougars, coyotes, bobcats, badgers, and red and gray foxes. Predatory birds, including golden and bald eagles, and great horned owls tend to have greater success in hunting skunks, though they still risk being blinded by their prey's musk.

The striped skunk is polygamous, and normally breeds once a year, though yearling females who have failed to mate may enter a second estrous cycle a month after the first. The mating season usually occurs between mid-February to mid-April, though it is delayed at higher latitudes. Prior to copulating, the males' testicles swell during the January–February period, with maximum size being attained in March. Males during this period will cover much ground in their search for females, sometimes covering 4 km (2.5 mi) per night. With their short, stubby legs, it isn't easy for a skunk to outrun a predator. The striped skunk has developed a unique defense system. When a skunk is threatened, it first tries to run away from the predator, the skunk is primarily nocturnal. It sleeps in its burrow during the day and hunts at night. It usually doesn't dig its own burrow. It looks for an abandoned burrow or finds a natural hollow under a tree or building.

Striped skunks are solitary, typically docile animals. They often live in the abandoned dens of other mammals during the day, or take up residence in hollowed logs, brush piles or underneath buildings. They prefer underground dens in colder winter climates. While not truly hibernating, striped skunks experience extended periods of inactivity during winter.

Reproduction

• Breeding season: February–April

• Gestation: ~59–77 days (with possible delayed implantation)

• Litter size: 2–10 kits (average 5–6)

  • Kits are born blind, naked, and helpless

  • Weaning at ~6–7 weeks

  • Kits disperse in autumn

• Lifespan: 3–4 years in the wild, up to 10+ in captivity

Skunks are defensive and shy to humans and other large animals using smelling fluid and fart too peels and runs away. For the Muscogee people, the skunk represented family loyalty and defense of loved ones. The Winnebago people used the skunk to symbolize vanity, being beautiful on the outside but ugly on the inside.

Likes

• Grubs

• Beetles

• Earthworms

• Quiet shelters

• Fallen fruit

• Warm dens

• Forest edges

• Nighttime activity

• Farts

Dislikes

• Loud disturbances

• Being cornered

• Predators

• Heavy human activity

• Flooded dens

• Prolonged extreme cold without shelter

• Their own fart

The range of the Canada skunk extends from central Canada, which includes the Maritimes, Quebec, Ontario, and British Columbia, to the northern and eastern United States. The edges of woodlands, mixed grasslands, agricultural areas, and brushy ravines are their preferred edge habitats. Due of their ease access to food and shelter, these very opportunistic skunks adore human farmlands and residential areas. They stay away from Arctic and thick alpine areas.

• Movement Pattern: Random

• Individual Type: Solo

• Population Trend: Increasing

• Population: ???

• Locomotion: Terrestrial

• Habitat: Taiga; Montane Grasslands and Shrublands; Temperate Coniferous Forests; Temperate Broadleaf and Mixed Forests; Temperate Deciduous Forests; Temperate Grasslands, Savannas, and Shrublands; Subtropical Coniferous Forests; Subtropical Moist Broadleaf Forests; Subtropical Dry Broadleaf Forests; Subtropical Grasslands, Savannas, and Shrublands; Salt Flats; Stone Forest; Tropical Coniferous Forests; Tropical Moist Broadleaf Forests; Tropical Dry Broadleaf Forests; Tropical Grasslands, Savannas and Shrublands; Mediterranean Forests, Woodlands, and Scrub; Mushroom Forests; Mushroom Fields; Deserts and Xeric Shrublands; Badlands; Fallow Airbase; Flooded Grasslands and Savannas; Swamp; Bayous/Billabongs; Riparian; Wetland; Mangrove Forest; Cold Bamboo Forests; Tropical Bamboo Forests; Air-breathing Coral Reefs; Graveyard Vale; Candyland; Radiated Citadel; Sulfur Lake; Volcanic Crater Lake; Lava Field; Lava Tube; Volcano; Lava Trench; Basalt Delta; Warm Ghost Town; Cold Ghost Town; Ruined Skyscraper.

• Earth: 

  • Extant (Resident): Canada; Mexico; United States (except Hawaii and Alaska)

Coming soon

The earliest fossil finds attributable to Mephitis were found in the Broadwater site in Nebraska, dating back to the early Pleistocene less than 1.8 million years ago. By the late Pleistocene (70,000–14,500 years ago), the striped skunk was widely distributed throughout the southern United States, and it expanded northwards and westwards by the Holocene (10,000–4,500 years ago) following the retreat of the Wisconsin glacier.

They have a long history of association with humans, having been trapped and captively bred for their fur and kept as pets. The striped skunk is one of the most recognizable of North America's animals, and is a popular figure in cartoons and children's books.

• Abenaki: Seganku

• Atikamekw: Cikakw

• Chipewyan: Nool'-tsee-a

• Cree: Shee-gawk

• Ojibwe: Zhigaag

• Tŝilhqot’in (Chilcotin): Guli

• Huron: Scangaresse

• Ogallala Sioux: Mah-kah

• Yankton Sioux: Mah-cah

• Ákán: Odompo

• Standard Arabic: ظربان أمريكي مخطط

• Egyptian Arabic: ظربان مخطط

• Aragonés: Mofeta

• Български: Ивичест скункс

• Brezhoneg: Skoñs roudennek

• Català: Mofeta ratllada

• Čeština: Skunk pruhovaný

• Deutsch: Streifenskunk

• English: Striped skunk

• Español: Mofeta rayada

• Eesti: Skunk

• Euskara: Mofeta arrunta

• Suomi: Haisunäätä

• Français: Mouffette rayée

• Georgian: მყრალა

• Greek: Μεφίτης

• Hebrew: בואש מפוספס

• Magyar: Csíkos bűzösborz

• Italiano: Moffetta comune, moffetta striata

• Nihon: シマスカンク

• Kazakh: Жолақты скунс

• Hangeul: 줄무늬스컹크

• Latvian: Svītrainais skunkss

• Luxembourghish: Sténk

• Mongolian: Судалт өмхий хүрэн

• Nederlands: Gestreepte skunk

• Diné Bizaad: Gólízhii noodǫ́zígíí

• Polski: Skunks zwyczajny

• Português: Cangambá

• Punjabi: تعاریاں والا سکنک

• Russian: Полосатый скунс

• Svenska: Strimmig skunk

• Türkçe: Bayağı şeritli kokarca

• Ukrainian: Скунс смугастий

• Vietnamese: Chồn hôi sọc

• 中文: 臭鼬

• The striped skunk was the first skunk species to be drawn before two species of stink badger, which are their closest relatives, were introduced.

• Every skunk has a unique stripe pattern, much like human fingerprints.

• An attacker's eyes can be precisely targeted by a skunk's spray.

• Before using up all of their smell glands, they can spray several times.

• The spray is greasy and challenging to remove with just soap.

• Skunk stench can be effectively eliminated with specific odor-neutralizing solutions or mixes that chemically break down thiols; tomato juice is mostly a fiction in this regard.

• During extreme winter conditions, numerous females may share one den to conserve heat.

• Despite their reputation, skunks are among the least aggressive wild mammals in North America.

• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Striped_skunk

• https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q368495

• https://species.wikimedia.org/wiki/Mephitis_mephitis

• https://animaldiversity.org/accounts/Mephitis_mephitis/

• https://www.gbif.org/species/5219380

• http://www.fossilworks.org/cgi-bin/bridge.pl?a=taxonInfo&taxon_no=48141

• https://gd.eppo.int/taxon/MEPHME

• http://www.boldsystems.org/index.php/TaxBrowser_TaxonPage?taxid=12544

• https://www.catalogueoflife.org/data/taxon/3ZT5J

• https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/41635/45211301

• https://nhpbs.org/natureworks/stripedskunk.htm

• https://www.deviantart.com/ognimdo2002/art/Striped-Skunk-901959074