. The animals of the world. Brehm's life of animals;. Mammals. THE MARTEN FAMILY—ZORILLA. 175 neck, near the shoulders, on the outside of the legs, and more rarely on the breast and under portion. The tail either shows two broad, white, longitudinal bands or else is irregularly marked with black and white. The Skunk has been known for a long time on account of the reckless manner in which it insults our sense of smell, and nearly all modern travelers continue to refer to it. Its range is rather extensive; the-animal being most plentiful near Hudson Bay, whence it is distributed southward. Its
. The animals of the world. Brehm's life of animals;. Mammals. THE MARTEN FAMILY—ZORILLA. 175 neck, near the shoulders, on the outside of the legs, and more rarely on the breast and under portion. The tail either shows two broad, white, longitudinal bands or else is irregularly marked with black and white. The Skunk has been known for a long time on account of the reckless manner in which it insults our sense of smell, and nearly all modern travelers continue to refer to it. Its range is rather extensive; the-animal being most plentiful near Hudson Bay, whence it is distributed southward. Its favorite haunts are the rather elevated portions of country, especially forests and beech-tree woods on river- banks, or rocky regions, in which it takes up its abode in caverns and clefts of the rocks. The Skunk is so well aware of its formidable weapon, that it is by no means shy or cowardly. It is slow in its movements ; it can neither jump nor climb, but only walk or hop. Its walk is nearly plantigrade, and it arches its back and carries its tail in a downward direc- tion. From time to time it burrows^ in the ground or sniffs around for something eata- ble. If one happens to meet it, it "quietly stops, lifts its tail, turns around and, if the in- truder comes too near, ejects its noxious fluid. Hensel says that when it is pursued by Dogs, it lays its tail along its back like a sitting Squirrel, turns its binder quarters towards the Dogs and performs queer, angry, hopping an- tics, such as one sometimes sees in the cages of Bears. The Dogs know their opponent's dangerous weapon and keep at a respectful distance, but few of them having the courage to seize and kill a Skunk. The attacked ani- mal never wastes its secretion by unnecessary haste, but continues to threaten as long as the Dogs are a few yards distant from it. Audubon's Ex- Audubon had a personal experi- perienee ence with a Skunk. "This small, with a Skunk, dainty, innocent looking anima:!," he sa
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Keywords: ., bookcentury1800, bookdecade1890, booksubjectmammals, bookyear1895
