Skunk mating season is upon us and the boys are out roaming! A skunk seen in the daytime from now until May is either a male looking for a lady or a Mama trying to find food to feed her kits. Leaving them alone to mosey along is the best remedy for skunk conflicts.
You may not think about skunks until you smell them, or see them by the side of the road, the victim of a road traffic incident.
It might seem like all of a sudden skunks are everywhere, and the weather isn’t even nice!
Mating season starts in February and the boys are getting their act in order to woo the finest ladies they can find.
Skunks are related to weasels and have strong claws for digging. They don’t hibernate but spend a lot more time in their burrows in the winter, with occasional forays for bugs. That’s why we don’t seem them much. Until suddenly we do!
A skunk’s favorite foods are earthworms, bees, grubs, grasshoppers, beetles and ants. They also eat eggs, mushrooms and a little fruit.
They don’t move very fast and so catch whatever they can find to eat as they amble around.
Their main predator is the human, with our cars and guns. Sometimes a foolish dog will tussle with a skunk, much to the owner’s chagrin.
Skunks have poor eyesight but a great sense of smell and hearing which they use to find tasty things.
They are sensitive to light and often get blinded by oncoming headlights. Please give them a brake!
Unaggressive or territorial in nature, they give lots of warning signs before they spray by stamping their feet and growling.
Skunks are peace loving animals and will stay out of your way and snuffle along.
You may hear hissing, squealing, screeching or grumbling males on the prowl, but when they find a lady they make gentle chirps.
Mama will give birth 60 days after conception to 4-6 “kits”. Babies stay in the den for 6 to 8 weeks. Once they emerge they will start “skunk school”, foraging alongside Mama.
In 4 or 5 months from now you may see little kits bouncing along behind their Mama!
Skunks aren’t social animals but will stay with Mama and siblings until the Fall.
Skunks like meadows and forests but enjoy a nice neighborhood and are very adaptable. As long as there’s a place to sleep and water nearby, a skunk is happy. They find their food as they come across it and seem to wander aimlessly-they are following their nose! Skunks like cat food, so if you keep outdoor cats, you may find a striped visitor one night.
They make their dens in ones abandoned by other species, in hollow logs, in brush piles and even under your shed.
If you are worried about conflict with a skunk, give me a call. Although they can carry the rabies virus, it is found only in a very small percent. They don’t mean us any harm and will move on once you’ve removed a food source, or shooed them out from your crawlspace. Let them be and they’ll stay out of your way, too.
