(Mephitis mephitis)
The Biogeography of the
(Mephitis mephitis)
by Michelle Welge, student in
Geography 316 Fall 2003
Thank you for visiting
our site. This web page was written by a student in Geography 316: Biogeography
and edited by the instructor, Barbara Holzman, PhD. All photos and maps
are posted with specific copyright permission for the express use of education
on these web pages. The students have tried to be as accurate as possible with
the information provided and sources and references are cited at the end of each
page.
| Mephitis mephitis
Kingdom: Animalia |
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| Source: Orkin PCO Services |
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Skunk Tracks
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Skunks are house cat-sized mammals with small, triangular heads, short ears, and short legs. The front legs are slightly shorter than those in the rear. They have black fur with two white stripes running from the nose, up over the head, and straight down the back to the end of their tail. The two striped converge at the nose and tip of the tail. The tail is long and fluffy, shaped much like a squirrel’s. Striped skunks have small, flat, padded paws, and claws which are longer on the front feet for digging. The length of these skunks is between 22.6in. and 31.5in. A skunk's weight will vary depending on sex and what time of the year it is. Skunks eat a lot before the winter months and live off of that fat all winter. A male skunk can weigh between 3 and 12 pounds, and the smaller female skunk can weigh between 2.5 and 9 pounds. (Verts) |
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Source: MFW&P |
ECOLOGY & HOME RANGE
Striped skunks live in temperate forests, rainforests and temperate grasslands.
They like mild temperatures. Skunks inhabit burrows that have been abandoned by
other burrowing animals. They may also choose hollowed logs or other crevices
for their home. Skunks don’t like to spend a lot of energy building a home, but
they will dig their own burrows if necessary. Skunks will seldom stray more than
two miles from a fresh water source. So you would not find them in an arid
environment. They also like suburbs because there is plenty of useable shelter
in and under buildings. There are even skunks in San Francisco! Skunks cannot
climb so they always make their homes at floor level or below.
FOOD
Skunks are nocturnal omnivores. They like to eat all sorts of plant matter such
as nuts, grains, buds, grasses, and fruits. Skunks also like their
protein! Fish, crustaceans, insects, eggs, small mammals such as shrews,
amphibians and even carrion are an important part of the skunk diet. Skunks are
opportunistic feeders, which means they will eat whatever they can get their
little paws on. Some things are available at different times of the year or in
different places.
A five week-old skunk "kit"
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SEXUALITY Skunks are solitary creatures and live alone in their burrows. Males and females only socialize long enough to mate. A male skunk will use its scent glands lightly to mark its territory and to let the ladies know that it is around. It will mate with several different females during a breeding season. There will only be one male in a den. If another male come around, the resident male skunk will fight for hours even until death to secure his harem. Skunks will never spray when fighting with each other. Once dominance is established the male skunk may then den with his females during hibernation in cold winter climates for warmth. In the spring, February-March, the male will mate with his female(s) and then resume his solitary life. Females will carry their young for 60-77 days and have about five or six blind, naked, and helpless little babies called "kits." The babies nurse for about a month and a half and then venture out of the den with their mother. The babies will leave their mother when they are about a year old. Female skunks are great moms. They will adopt orphaned or stranded young and allow them to nurse with their own kits. Barren female skunks have even been known to kidnap kits from another mother's den! |
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The Striped Skunk is part of the Mustelidae family
Weasels, ferrets, mink, marten, fishers, wolverines, badgers, skunks,
otters, and others are all part of the Mustelidae family, all of which, in
the past, have been classified as weasels. Mustelidae have a distinct
absent upper fourth premolar notch and upper second molar. They also
have expanded scent glands.
(RR.com) Around 60 million years ago, in the Eocene Era, a group called Miacidae evolved as five-fingered, slender-bodied, tree-climbing mammals. They evolved from a group known as Cimolestidae, the predecessors to all modern-day carnivores.
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Because they were more versatile than other animals, Miacids continued to adaptively radiate out into the world. They adapted to many different environments and niches. They began to eat all sorts of foods and became mixed feeders, or omnivores. They were able to do this because they developed a special set of teeth with molars for crushing plant material and canines for ripping flesh. (RR.com) |
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The Striped Skunk has a continuous distribution throughout
much of North America. They are found from northern Mexico through
mid-Canada. Skunks avoid the coldest temperatures and the most arid
regions such as the deserts of the southwest United States.
Skunks need to be near a water source to survive. Skunks will live in a variety of altitudes from sea-level to 13,800 feet, but are rare above 6,000 feet. (Verts) Skunks are very versatile creatures and will live in a variety of habitats. They may be found in evergreen forests burrowed in a rotting log, in deciduous forests dug under the root structure of an old tree, in grassy plains in an expanded abandoned marmot burrow and even in agricultural, suburban and urban areas.
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PEE-YEW!
Skunks are famous for their smell. A skunk has two scent glands on either
side of its anus. These glands spray a very unique, pungent odor when the
skunk is severely threatened. Usually a skunk will run away from a fight
with a larger creature and not use its scent glands unless absolutely
necessary. When a skunk sprays its scent, some of it will stick to its fur,
making it unappealing to potential mates and easy for other predators to
find. If its attacker persists, the skunk will arch its back, raise its fur
and stick its tail strait up into the air muck like a house cat will. This
makes the skunk appear to be bigger and more ferocious. A skunk may also
stomp it's feet as a warning. Some animals (famously, dogs) who have
never encountered a skunk before will persist. As a last measure, the skunk
will turn its face and tail toward the attacker, in a sort of U shape, and
shoot streams of stinky fluid. This stream can squirt up to 2 or 3 meters.
This fluid can burn the eyes and nose of the attacker and even make it
nauseous.
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Skunk smell cannot be washed off with tomato juice, ammonia or gasoline this simply masks the odor to some one whose nose is already used to the smell (olfactory exhaustion). A suggested* treatment for odor removal is: 1 quart 3% Hydrogen Peroxide *solution may bleach hair and other objects (MFW&P)
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HUMAN INTERACTION
Humans usually want little to do with skunks and generally will leave them
alone. Sometimes skunks are hunted for their fur. This is not a wide practice
because the smell must be washed out of the pelt, which is not a fun project. Skunks will
live in suburbs with people using their buildings and landscaping for shelter.
Since skunks only come out at night, people may not even know they have a skunk
for a neighbor, unless it is confronted by another animal, such as a dog or cat. The smell
then usually gives them away pretty quickly.
ETYMOLOGY The name Mephitis mephitis comes from the Latin word “mephit,” which means “bad odor.” The word “skunk” comes from the Abenaki Indian word “segankw” or “segongw.” (Verts)
The city Chicago's name was adapted from the Fox Indian word meaning "the Place-of-the-Skunk," from a myth about a huge skunk that was killed on the southwestern shore of Lake Michigan. (Verts)
OTHER -When it was fashionable to wear fur-trimmed clothing, skunks were farmed and their pelt, which was called "black sable."
-Skunks can also swim if they have to, for up to 7 1/2 hours! They use the dog-paddle. (Verts)
DISEASES AND PARASITES
Skunks can get, and give, fleas, lice, mites, ticks and Bot Fly larvae.
Skunks may carry and transmit:
Leptospirosis- a worm infestation that infects the kidneys and genital tracts of agricultural stock, but certain species have been known to infect humans.
Q Fever- transmittable through the air, inhaled by humans and cattle. Causes fever cough and chest pains. Most people will recover from it completely.
Listeriosis- a gastrointestinal organism that can be found in milk, cheese and meat. It may cause miscarriage.
Pulmonary Aspergillosis, Histoplasmosis, Acute Bronchopneumonia & Pleuritis- lung infections.
Ringworm- a worm that inhabits a host’s skin and can be seen in a ring shape.
Murine Typhus- spread by parasites. Organisms inhabit a cell and divide until the cell bursts. It may be fatal.
Chagas’ Disease- symptoms may include constipation, always being tired, inability to swallow, fever, discomfort and/or abdominal pain. This disease is a problem in South and Central America.
Tularemia- a plague-like disease
Brucellosis- joint inflammation in domestic animals, especially cattle
Canine Distemper- profuse vomiting, diarrhea, and lethargy in domestic animals (Verts)
-Cesar, Ed, Canadian Wildlife Services, Striped Skunk. (5/15/2002) Available: http://www.hww.ca/hww2.asp?pid=1&id=104&cid=8 [10/29/03]
-Critter Care Wildlife Society, Urban Wildlife. (2/5/2003) Available: http://www.crittercarewildlife.org/Urban.htm [10/29/03]
-McClung, Robert M., 1969. Blaze: The Story of a Striped Skunk. William Morrow and Company. New York
-Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks, Living With Skunks. Available: http://www.fwp.state.mt.us/wildthings/livingwwildlife/livingwskunks.asp [12/5/03]
-Orkin PCO Services, Skunks. Available: http://www.pco.ca/skunks.htm [10/29/03]
-Research Reports.com, Available: http://www.research-reports.com/categories/008-013.html [12/5/03]
-Savage, R. J. G., and M. R. Long. 1986. Mammal Evolution: An Illustrated Guide. London: British Museum (Natural History).
-Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History. Striped Skunk. (12/2003) Available: http://www.mnh.si.edu/exhibits/mammals/StripedSkunk.htm [12/3/03]
-Stouffer, Marty, Wild America Striped Skunks, (10/29/2003) Available: http://www.wildamerica.com/pages/transss.html [10/29/2003]
-Verts, B.J., 1967. The Biology of the Striped Skunk. University of Illinois Press. Urbana, Chicago, London
-Wilke, Christopher J., University of Michigan, Animal Diversity Web, (2003) Available: http://animaldiversity.ummz.umich.edu/accounts/mephitis/m._mephitis$narrative.html [10/29/03]
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Source: Savage & Long
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