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.
The word skunk is dated from the 1630s, adapted from a southern New England Algonquian language (probably Abenaki) seganku, from Proto-Algonquian*šeka:kwa, from *šek- 'to urinate' + *-a:kw 'fox'.[3]Skunk has historic use as an insult, attested from 1841.[4]
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][lower-alpha 1]
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
Skunk species vary in size from about 15.6 to 37in (40 to 94cm) long and in weight from about 1.1lb (0.50kg) (spotted skunks) to 18lb (8.2kg) (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.
Back left foot of an albino skunk
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).
Behavior
A skunk in Ontario, Canada
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 miles (1 to 3km) in diameter, with males expanding during breeding season to travel 4 to 5 miles (6 to 8km) 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 3m (10ft) 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.[10][11]
Reproduction
Skunks mate in early spring and are polygynous (that is, successful males are uninhibited from mating with additional females).
Before giving birth (usually in May), the female excavates a den to house her litter of four to seven kits.
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.
The mother is protective of her kits, spraying at any sign of danger. The male plays no part in raising the young.[13]
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 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
Striped skunk (Mephitis mephitis) in a defensive posture with erect and puffed tail, indicating its readiness to spray.
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 3m (10ft).[19] The spray can also cause irritation and even temporary blindness, and is sufficiently powerful to be detected by a human nose up to 5.6km (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:
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 15cm3– 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.[25] In one case, the remains of 57 striped skunks were found in a single great horned owl nest.[26]
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 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.[27] In 1993,[28] American chemist Paul Krebaum developed a compound that chemically neutralizes skunk spray by changing the odor-causing thiols into odorless acids. This compound can be prepared as a mixture of: 1 quart of 3% hydrogen peroxide, ¼ cup of baking soda, and 1-2 teaspoons of liquid dish soap.[29]The Humane Society of the United States recommends treating dogs using the Krebaum mixture.[30]
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 acetatethioesters of these.[31][32][33][34][35][36] These compounds are detectable by the human nose at concentrations of only 11.3 parts per billion.[37][38]
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, 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.[39][40] 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.)
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.[41] When a skunk is kept as a pet, its scent glands are often surgically removed.[41]
A pet albino skunk on a walk
In the UK, skunks can be kept as pets,[42] but the Animal Welfare Act 2006 made it illegal to remove their scent glands.[43]
↑ 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]
Related Research Articles
Mephitidae is a family of mammals comprising the skunks and stink badgers. They are noted for the great development of their anal scent glands, which they use to deter predators. Skunks were formerly classified as a subfamily of the Mustelidae ; however, in the 1990s, genetic evidence caused skunks to be treated as a separate family. Similarly, the stink badgers had been classified with badgers, but genetic evidence shows they share a more recent common ancestor with skunks, so they are now included in the skunk family. A 2017 study using retroposon markers indicated that they are most closely related to the Ailuridae and Procyonidae.
In organic chemistry, a thiol, or thiol derivative, is any organosulfur compound of the form R−SH, where R represents an alkyl or other organic substituent. The −SH functional group itself is referred to as either a thiol group or a sulfhydryl group, or a sulfanyl group. Thiols are the sulfur analogue of alcohols, and the word is a blend of "thio-" with "alcohol".
The genus Spilogale includes all skunks commonly known as spotted skunks. Currently, there are four accepted extant species: S. gracilis, S. putorius, S. pygmaea, and S. angustifrons. New research, however, proposes that there may be up to seven.
Although capable of living indoors with humans similarly to cats or dogs, pet skunks are somewhat of a novelty, and still relatively rare, mostly due to restrictive local and regional laws and the complexity of their diet, habits and care. The highest concentrations of pet skunks are mainly kept in the Canada, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Poland, and the United States.
A stink bomb, sometimes called a stinkpot, is a device designed to create an unpleasant smell. They range in effectiveness from being used as simple pranks to military grade malodorants or riot control chemical agents.
The striped polecat, also called the African polecat, zoril, zorille, zorilla, Cape polecat, and African skunk, is a member of the family Mustelidae that resembles a skunk. The name "zorilla" comes from the Spanish word "zorillo", meaning "skunk", itself a diminutive form of the Spanish "zorro," "fox." It lives predominantly in dry and arid climates, such as the savannahs and open country of Central, Southern, and sub-Saharan Africa, excluding the Congo basin and the more coastal areas of West Africa.
The anal glands or anal sacs are small glands near the anus in many mammals. They are situated in between the external anal sphincter muscle and internal anal sphincter muscle. Their function in humans is unclear.
The eastern spotted skunk is a small, relatively slender skunk found in North America, in the central and parts of the southeastern United States and in small areas of Canada and Mexico.
The hog-nosed skunks belong to the genus Conepatus and are members of the family Mephitidae (skunks). They are native to the Americas. They have white backs and tails and black underparts.
The striped skunk is a skunk of the genus Mephitis that occurs across much of North America, including southern Canada, the United States, and northern Mexico. It is currently listed as least concern by the IUCN on account of its wide range and ability to adapt to human-modified environments.
The hooded skunk is a species of mammal in the family Mephitidae. Mephītis in Latin means "foul odor", μακρός (makrós) in Greek translates to "long" and οὐρά (ourá) translates to "tail".
Dogs, as with all mammals, have natural odors. Natural dog odor can be unpleasant to dog owners, especially when dogs are kept inside the home, as some people are not used to being exposed to the natural odor of a non-human species living in proximity to them. Dogs may also develop unnatural odors as a result of skin disease or other disorders or may become contaminated with odors from other sources in their environment.
The Palawan stink badger, pantot or tuldo in the Batak language, is a carnivoran of the western Philippines named for its resemblance to badgers, its powerful smell, and the largest island to which it is native, Palawan. Like all stink badgers, the Palawan stink badger was once thought to share a more recent common ancestor with badgers than with skunks. Recent genetic evidence, however, has led to their re-classification as one of the Mephitidae, the skunk family of mammals. It is the size of a large skunk or small badger, and uses its badger-like body to dig by night for invertebrates in open areas near patches of brush. While it lacks the whitish dorsal patches typical of its closest relatives, predators and hunters generally avoid the powerful noxious chemicals it can spray from the specialized anal glands characteristic of mephitids.
The western spotted skunk is a spotted skunk of western North America.
Butane-1-thiol, also known as butyl mercaptan, is a volatile, clear to yellowish liquid with a fetid odor, commonly described as "skunk" odor. In fact, 1-butanethiol is structurally similar to several major constituents of a skunk's defensive spray but is not actually present in the spray. The scent of 1-butanethiol is so strong that the human nose can easily detect it in the air at concentrations as low as 10 parts per billion. The threshold level for 1-butanethiol is reported as 1.4 ppb
The pygmy spotted skunk is a species of mammal in the family Mephitidae. It is endemic to Mexico.
The American hog-nosed skunk is a species of hog-nosed skunk from Central and North America, and is one of the largest skunks in the world, growing to lengths of up to 2.7 feet (82 cm). Recent work has concluded the western hog-nosed skunk is the same species, and Conepatus leuconotus is the correct name of the merged populations.
The southern spotted skunk is a species of mammal in the skunk family, (Mephitidae). It ranges from Costa Rica to southern Mexico. At one time this skunk was considered to be a subspecies of the eastern spotted skunk.
References
↑ "Old World skunk". Retrieverman.net. 2 November 2015. Archived from the original on 28 March 2023. Retrieved 13 December 2018.
↑ Andersen K. K.; Bernstein D. T. (1978). "Some Chemical Constituents of the Scent of the Striped Skunk (Mephitis mephitis)". Journal of Chemical Ecology. 1 (4): 493–499. doi:10.1007/BF00988589. S2CID9451251.
↑ Andersen K. K.; Bernstein D. T.; Caret R. L.; Romanczyk L. J. Jr. (1982). "Chemical Constituents of the Defensive Secretion of the Striped Skunk (Mephitis mephitis)". Tetrahedron. 38 (13): 1965–1970. doi:10.1016/0040-4020(82)80046-X.
↑ Wood, William F. (1990). "New Components in Defensive Secretion of the Striped Skunk, Mephitis mephitis". J. Chemical Ecology. 16: 2057–2065. doi:10.1007/BF01020516.
↑ Wood W. F.; Sollers B. G.; Dragoo G. A.; Dragoo J. W. (2002). "Volatile Components in Defensive Spray of the Hooded Skunk, Mephitis macroura". Journal of Chemical Ecology. 28 (9): 1865–70. doi:10.1023/A:1020573404341. PMID12449512. S2CID19217201.
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