Ecology

The lovable side of skunks

Anne Gageby
Strawberry Hill Nature Preserve

(11/2023) Growing up on Mount Hope, I often heard my Pappy telling stories of chasing skunks before school in hopes of being sprayed. His antics were sometimes successful. He’d go to school reeking of musk and be promptly sent home so as to "not disturb the learning environment". Back in the late 1930’s, he considered it a win. I doubt too many kids would agree, even today.

I personally don’t know a single person, other than Pappy, who would enjoy being sprayed by a skunk. Their musk contains several volatile chemical compounds. The two main compounds are thiols and thioacetates, both of which are rich in sulfur and extremely hard to clean off. The molecules are fairly stable and bond well to other atoms. Cleaning the skunk smell from clothes and fur takes strength. Tomato juice and other folk remedies just don’t cut it. The Humane Society recommends mixing one quart of hydrogen peroxide, a quarter cup of baking soda, and one teaspoon of dishwashing liquid. This breaks the chemical bonds and neutralizes the compounds.

Fortunately, a skunk won’t spray unless as a last resort. It takes up to ten days for their spray to replenish so they would prefer to conserve their most potent defense system. Instead, a skunk will hiss, stomp its feet, hop backward, and raise its tail in warning before spraying. It prefers to bluff an enemy rather than attack. If a skunk does spray, watch out. They’re capable of spraying up to twelve feet and aiming directly where they want to hit. And if they hit a target’s eyes, it’s definitely over. Musk is potent enough to temporarily blind a target, even humans.

Striped skunks, such as Strawberry Hill’s Animal Ambassador, Ollie, belong to the mephitidae family. Historically, skunks have been lumped in with ferrets in the mustelidae family, but genetic analysis has shown that skunks belong to their own distinct group. There are three skunk species within the United States. Hognose and hooded skunks are found in the American Southwest. While Pennsylvania is home to two species, the striped skunk and spotted skunk, spotted skunks’ natural range extends only as far north as the southwestern part of the state. If you have a run-in with a skunk in our area, it would be a striped skunk. Their natural range covers all 48 contiguous states up to southern Canada and down to northern Mexico.

Despite misconceptions, skunks are gentle and slow-moving, almost lazy at times. They move at their own pace, choosing to meander through their days. If needed, they can reach a top speed of 10 miles per hour. Instead of depending upon running from a potential threat, as other animals do, they’ve adapted to wearing a deterrent. Their markings are aposematic meaning they send a clear message to potential predators that the intended prey is dangerous. It’s the anti-camouflage. Skunks’ bold coloring and markings let the world know it’s best to leave them be. It mostly works.

Skunks have few natural predators beyond larger carnivores who like to test the limits. Coyotes, foxes, bobcats, badgers, and mountain lions will sometimes take their chances against a skunk. For the most part, cars, parasites, and birds of prey are more of a threat than other mammals. The great horned owl and eagles are skunks’ true natural predators, mostly because they’re not bothered by the smell. Most skunks live two to three years in the wild. In human care, they can live up to ten years.

Their diet depends on where they live and what’s available at a specific time of year. In warmer months, skunks feed on insects in both adult and larval forms. They’re well-known for scrapping and clawing through decaying wood to gather a meal. They’re also known for digging out bumblebee nests and chasing honeybees. Interestingly, stings from bees and wasps don’t bother skunks. It’s a superpower that opens up a wide range of meal possibilities. Grasshoppers, beetles, and crickets are other common favorites along with spiders, toads, mice, chipmunks, and eggs of turtles and ground-nesting birds. They’ve been known to eat grasses, leaves, and buds as well as mast. Fruit such as strawberries, grapes, blueberries, and cherries are a treat often found in the wild and enjoyed in season. In other words, they’re not picky eaters.

While they’re chiefly nocturnal, preferring to hunt between dusk and dawn, they are frequently spotted during the day. To see a skunk during the day doesn’t necessarily indicate illness or something wrong. Unlike many other nocturnal animals, daylight hours aren’t strictly off-limits. Ollie, for example, tends to sleep during the day but regularly plays and explores in the afternoon.

Skunks den in stumps and ground burrows, wood and rock piles, and sometimes beneath buildings, much to the annoyance of homeowners. Getting rid of skunks under a deck, for example, can be a tricky process. Their burrows have a central chamber that can be more than a foot underground. Skunks often connect their burrows to the surface via tunnels that can be upwards of 15 feet long and burrows usually have more than one tunnel. Finding, and removing a skunk, can be a daunting process.

Cold weather is just starting to creep in, and our season’s first frost is almost here. Ollie, like others of his kind, will begin slowing down in preparation for winter. While skunks don’t hibernate, they do experience torpor – a state of dormancy. They’ll go to their dens and rest for the winter. Because torpor is a temporary state, you may see skunks out and about on warmer days. So, if you’re not into seeing or smelling skunks, winter doesn’t necessarily give you a break.

Our English word, skunk, comes from the Algonquian word seganku. The Latin family name, mephitis, generally means "a bad odor", a fitting description for this rather small omnivore. Even though Ollie, our incredible Animal Ambassador, had his scent glands removed while he was young, he still emits a smelly, musky scent. In short, he still smells like a skunk. A loveable, wonderful skunk. Pappy would have appreciated him. And the more I learn about skunks, the more I appreciate them. But I still don’t want to be sprayed by one.

Anne Gageby is the Environmental Education Manager of the Strawberry Hill Foundation. Strawberry Hill inspires stewardship of our natural world by
connecting the community with educational opportunities.
 Learn more by visiting StrawberryHill.org.