A study in the Cascade Range in Oregon of a tiny, elusive skunk found the animal can cover more ground than deer and is sensitive to climate change, particularly severe winter weather.
A study in the Cascade Range in Oregon of a tiny, elusive skunk found the animal can cover more ground than deer and is sensitive to climate change, particularly severe winter weather.
The research is important because small mammals such as the western spotted skunk face major threats from human-induced land use change, said Marie Tosa, who as an Oregon State University graduate student spent 2½ years studying the skunks. Her findings(Link is external) provide data to shape future skunk monitoring efforts and identify threats they face.
The western spotted skunk, which typically weighs 1 to 2 pounds and is about the size of a squirrel, is smaller than the striped skunk that is common in urban environments.
“The easiest way to describe them is a tube sock,” said Tosa, who is now a postdoctoral researcher at Oregon State. “They’re a black and white tube sock. They are mostly black but they have white spots all over them. They have this giant white spot on their forehead. And they’re really, really adorable.”
Read more at Oregon State University
Image: A western spotted skunk in a live trap. Photo: Marie Tosa. (Credit: Marie Tosa)
