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9 splendid facts about skunks you might not know

Published: September 5, 2018 Updated: June 10, 2022
How’s your skunk knowledge? Does it stink? Don’t worry: we asked Jerry Dragoo, a mephitologist — a.k.a., skunk expert — for all the fascinating (and sometimes smelly) details.
9 splendid facts about skunks you might not know

skunk-tail
Most carnivores have glands at the base of the tail that produce an oily musk. Many use the secretions to mark territory. In skunks, these glands evolved to have a defensive function. Photo by Holly Kuchera/Shutterstock
Their scent glands are modified sweat glands

skunk-looking-out-on-grass
“They can see and detect movement,” says Dragoo. “Given that they’ve been around for about 40 million years, I would say that poor eyesight hasn’t hindered them. They rely on their other senses.” Photo by JeremyRichards/Shutterstock
Skunks have poor eyesight — but they’re not blind

two-skunks
Skunk populations go in cycles. “A population will increase until a carrying capacity is reached,” says Dragoo. “There are a lot of resources in urban areas — food, water, shelter — so those areas can hold a larger population.” But this will lead to more opportunities for diseases to spread, which will then reduce the population size once again. Photo by Holly Kuchera/Shutterstock
If you feel like there are more skunks in your neighbourhood, it might be because there are actually more skunks in your neighbourhood

“Skunks usually only spray when they’re in fear for their lives,” says Dragoo. They’d rather run away, or, try to scare off a predator with warning behaviour: hissing, arching their back, or stomping their feet. So if you accidentally corner a skunk, just move away slowly and give it an escape route. Photo by Rachel Portwood/Shutterstock
Skunks would prefer not to spray you. Or anything, ever

Young skunks produce only a ‘poof’ of gas, says Dragoo. But by the time a skunk is about six weeks old, its liquid spray contains thiols, stinky sulphur compounds. (Psst: the terpene compounds in some marijuana strains smell similar to the thiols in skunk spray. This is why some weed smells “skunky.”) Photo by Debbie Steinhausser/Shutterstock
Baby skunks can spray — but they’re not very potent

They can send out a cloud of mist, while, for example, running away from a predator that’s in pursuit, or, when cornered, shoot a stream of liquid. “I call this the .357 Magnum approach,” says Dragoo. “They’re accurate to about 10 feet. But close counts in horseshoes, grenades, and skunk spray.” Photo by Geoffrey Kuchera/Shutterstock
Skunks can control their spray

They can spray multiple times in quick succession, but will then usually need time — how much varies — to replenish the supply of spray that they can secrete. “I was sprayed by one skunk nine times in a row, in 11 seconds,” says Dragoo. “Then I was sprayed three more times by the same skunk about 90 minutes later.” Photo by Layne VR/Shutterstock
Skunks need time to reload

Sometimes a person exposed to a strong smell — such as skunk spray — experiences “olfactory fatigue”: the nose stops detecting the odour (it’s an adaptive nervous system response). Introduce a new, strong smell—such as tomato juice—and the nose immediately picks it up. The juice hasn’t neutralized the smell of skunk spray. It has only temporarily replaced it. Photo by abriendomundo/Shutterstock
As a de-skunker, tomato juice doesn’t work...but you might briefly believe that it does

A mix of hydrogen peroxide, baking soda, and a little liquid soap is useful because this solution changes the thiols in skunk spray to sulphonic acids, which don’t smell. Bleach has the same effect (just don’t use it on your pets). “My wife uses diluted bleach on me,” says Dragoo. “I can tell what kind of mood she’s in by how diluted the bleach is.” Photo by Heiko Kiera/Shutterstock
Chemistry is the only way to battle skunk spray

How’s your skunk knowledge? Does it stink? Don’t worry: we asked Jerry Dragoo, a mephitologist — a.k.a., skunk expert — for all the fascinating (and sometimes smelly) details.

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