Skunk

A skunk

A skunk is a mammal, usually black with a white stripe on its back and a fluffy tail, but some skunks can be brown or gray. Its most special part is that it can shoot out a bad-smelling spray from under its tail; it does this to scare away things that could hurt it. Some people keep skunks as pets.

It can eat both plants and small animals like earthworms, frogs, snakes, birds and eggs. It usually eats berries, leaves, grasses and nuts. In places where humans live, skunks often steal food from garbage or pet bowls.

The striped skunk is the most well-known kind of skunk. It weighs 2.5 to 14 pounds (1.2–6.3 kg) with a body length (without the tail) of 13 to 18 inches (33–46 cm). The tail is 7 to 10 inches long (18–25 cm), and sometimes has a white tip.

Most types of skunk live in the United States and Canada, but there are also types that live in Indonesia and the Philippines.

Skunk Media

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  A hooded skunk skeleton on display at the Museum of Osteology

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  Back left foot of an albino skunk

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  A skunk in Ontario, Canada

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  Striped skunk (Mephitis mephitis) in a defensive posture with erect and puffed tail, indicating its readiness to spray.

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  Chemical structure of some of the compounds in skunk musk. Derived from Image:SkunkMuskChem.png using InkScape 0.46

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  Pet skunk in kitchen

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  A pet albino skunk on a walk