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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 37 in (40 to 94 cm) long and in weight from about 1.1 lb (0.50 kg) (spotted skunks) to 18 lb (8.2 kg) ( hog-nosed skunks ).
The twelve species of Mephitidae are split into four genera: the monotypic Conepatus, hog-nosed skunks; Mephitis, skunks; Mydaus, stink badgers; and Spilogale, spotted skunks. Mephitidae was traditionally a clade within the Mustelidae family, with the stink badgers combined with other badgers within the Melinae genus, but more recent genetic ...
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 (the weasel family); however, in the 1990s, genetic evidence caused skunks to be treated as a ...
Recent work has concluded the western hog-nosed skunk (formerly Conepatus mesoleucus) is the same species, and Conepatus leuconotus is the correct name of the merged populations. [ 3 ] In Texas, it is commonly known as the rooter skunk for its habit of rooting and overturning rocks and debris in search of food.
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 ...
Spotted skunks protect themselves by spraying a strong and unpleasant scent. Two glands on the sides of the anus release the odorous oil through nipples. When threatened, the skunk turns its body into a U-shape with the head and anus facing the attacker.
A small albino skunk, about as large as a house cat, sniffed and stomped its way through her yard in mid-April. "It was like rooting around, snuffling around in the grass looking for grubs or bugs ...
The western spotted skunk was first described by Clinton Hart Merriam in 1890; [18] its specific name, gracilis, is derived from the Latin for "slender". [3] There remains discussion on whether the western spotted skunk is a subspecies of the eastern spotted skunk (S. putorius), a common skunk in the eastern United States. Many support the idea ...