First Reported Observation of Food Provisioning to Offspring by an Eastern Spotted Skunk, a Small Carnivore

Thorne, Emily D.; Waggy, Charles

doi:10.1656/045.024.0108

Cited by 13 publications

(7 citation statements)

References 10 publications

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“…Thorne et al () hypothesized that this relationship was due to densities of understory cover associated with the different‐aged forest stands. By contrast, low‐elevation areas in our study might have been preferred because of their proximity to stream beds, where mountain laurel and rhododendron cover was high and increased herpetofauna and invertebrate forage might be available (Sprayberry and Edelman , Thorne and Waggy ). Alternatively, low‐elevation forest attributes in our study area might not be fully comparable with low‐elevation sites in other portions of the Appalachian Mountain range (Simon et al ).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 71%

Evaluating detection and occupancy probabilities of eastern spotted skunks

Eng

Jachowski

2019

J Wildl Manag

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The eastern spotted skunk (Spilogale putorius) is a poorly understood mesocarnivore species that suffered a range‐wide decline in the mid‐1900s. Little is known about its current distribution or habitat needs, and in the southern Appalachians, where the Carolinas and Georgia converge, eastern spotted skunks were only recently discovered to persist. From January–April in 2016 and 2017, we used camera trap surveys to monitor eastern spotted skunks and used occupancy modeling to evaluate factors we hypothesized would influence the probability of spotted skunk detection and occurrence at the landscape scale. We detected spotted skunks at 55.6% of our sites and on 18.5% of sampling occasions. Our results suggest that detection probability was influenced by predation risk, camera setup, and the type of scent‐based attractant used. Eastern spotted skunk occupancy probability had a negative relationship with elevation, such that the probability of occupancy on average increased 7% for every 100‐m decrease in elevation. These results differ from previous findings from the northern Appalachian region, and suggest spotted skunks in the southern Appalachians may be more widely distributed than previously thought. To inform management, there remains a critical need for finer‐scale investigations into resource selection and demographic trends. © 2019 The Wildlife Society.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 71%

Evaluating detection and occupancy probabilities of eastern spotted skunks

Eng

Jachowski

2019

J Wildl Manag

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“…Of the four past studies that reported latency to detection (Hackett et al 2007, Diggins et al 2015, Wilson et al 2016, Eng and Jachowski 2019a), our results with wild boar carcasses were similar or lower, and in our study, carcasses reduced latency to detection by half or more compared to the other attractants. Despite evidence of the effectiveness of large animal carcasses for eastern spotted skunks (Thorne et al 2017), they are under‐utilized as an attractant in studies. Most carnivores, including eastern spotted skunks, are scavengers (Allen et al 2015, Sebastián‐González 2020), and the use of carrion resources appears to be an effective method of detecting eastern spotted skunks.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Eastern spotted skunks Spilogale putorius are thought to have been abundant in the central and southeastern United States of America before dramatic declines in abundance beginning in the 1940s (Gompper and Hackett 2005). Reasons for this decline are not fully understood but may include habitat loss (Gompper and Hackett 2005), disease (Thorne et al 2017) or increased use of pesticides (Gompper and Hackett 2005). As a result, eastern spotted skunks are a species of concern in many of the states where they occur (Gompper and Hackett 2005) and are considered vulnerable by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN, Gompper and Jachowski 2016).…”

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confidence: 99%

“…We compared three different attractants to each other and to a control of no attractant to determine if any bait (accessible for consumption) or lure (not accessible for consumption) increased detections, decreased latency to first detection or changed the temporal activity of eastern spotted skunks. Our first attractant was a bait of wild boar Sus scrofa carcasses, based on a previous study's successful use of large animal carcasses to attract eastern spotted skunks (Thorne et al 2017). The second was a lure of sardines as they are the most common attractant used for eastern spotted skunks (Hackett et al 2007, Lesmeister et al 2009, Table 1).…”

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confidence: 99%

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Efficacy of attractants for detecting eastern spotted skunks: an experimental approach

et al. 2021

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“…Specifically, we suggest that 2 factors are influencing this generalist behavior. First, eastern spotted skunks are omnivorous (Crabb , Kinlaw , Sprayberry and Edelman , Thorne and Waggy ) and food within our study area was widely available (Harris ), suggesting that Florida spotted skunks at our site might be able to find adequate food resources without needing to forage in specific areas (e.g., certain natural communities, locations near wetland features). Second, spotted skunks in the Route 60 unit likely did not have to cope with the food competitors or predators present in other regions.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Den Site Selection by the Florida Spotted Skunk

et al. 2019

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The eastern spotted skunk (Spilogale putorius) is a species of conservation concern in much of its range and has experienced a decline since the early to mid‐1990s. But the subspecies that inhabits peninsular Florida, the Florida spotted skunk (S. p. ambarvalis), might still be abundant and is an important nest predator of the endangered Florida grasshopper sparrow (Ammodramus savannarum floridanus). To gain insight on this little‐studied subspecies and inform potential management strategies, we conducted a resource selection study on the Florida spotted skunk. We examined 5 hypotheses for den site selection related to den type, vegetation, and landscape characteristics in a dry prairie ecosystem in central Florida. We tracked 36 individual skunks to 757 den sites. Using discrete choice analysis, we found that male and nonbreeding female skunks at our study site were 5 times more likely to select a mammal burrow over a gopher tortoise (Gopherus polyphemus) burrow, that selection of a den site increased 34% for each 1‐burrow increase in the number of nearby burrows, and that selection of a den site increased 3% for every 10‐cm increase in a visual obstruction index. Similarly, breeding female skunks were more likely to select mammal burrows and shallow depressions over gopher tortoise burrows by 16‐fold and 13‐fold, respectively, and selection of a den site increased by 75% for every 1‐burrow increase in the number of nearby burrows. In contrast to previous studies that occurred in forested, mountainous environments elsewhere in the species' range, our findings suggest that den characteristics might be more important than landscape or vegetation characteristics to Florida spotted skunk den site selection in dry prairie. Additionally, the frequency of prescribed fires on the landscape did not appear to affect Florida spotted skunk den site selection. Thus, Florida spotted skunks in this ecosystem might be landscape generalists, thereby potentially limiting the ability of managers to control nest predation by this subspecies through habitat management. © 2019 The Wildlife Society.

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First Reported Observation of Food Provisioning to Offspring by an Eastern Spotted Skunk, a Small Carnivore

Cited by 13 publications

References 10 publications

Evaluating detection and occupancy probabilities of eastern spotted skunks

Evaluating detection and occupancy probabilities of eastern spotted skunks

Efficacy of attractants for detecting eastern spotted skunks: an experimental approach

Den Site Selection by the Florida Spotted Skunk

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