You’ll find them in forests, deserts, and even mountains, depending on the species. The polecat, as other people refer to them, are primarily nocturnal creatures. The most common being the striped skunk (Mephitis mephitis). There exist 11 different species in the skunk family. Others are brown, and others are spotted. Box 2280, 369 York St., London, Ont., N6A 4G1, and we’ll try to respond in future columns.Not all skunks are striped or black and white. Send your gardening questions to Home, c/o The London Free Press, P.O. Growing Concerns is produced by Parkway Gardens. So just like us, they manage to survive the Canadian winter to bless us with their presence once again in the spring.ĭenise Hodgins holds an Ontario diploma in horticulture. The winter denning period of sleeping and waking usually lasts about 100 days, then in spring mating season begins. The shared body heat helps the skunks survive the winter. Males usually den alone, but may join the females. Skunks are normally solitary animals, but in winter, females den together, as many as 12 per den. Inside the den, there are one to three separate chambers, one of which is used as a nest. Skunks also den in hollow logs or under buildings, decks or porches. A skunk may take over an old groundhog or fox burrow, or dig its own. Their diet is what gets skunks into trouble with people, since they dig holes and even roll back sod looking for grubs, worms and rootsĪ skunk den is usually a ground burrow, with as many as five openings. They will also scrounge for berries, roots, leaves, grasses, and nuts.Īnd of course, garbage is available even in winter. When live food is available, skunks will feed on insects, earthworms, eggs, frogs, snakes, and similar small animals. Skunks also have to leave the den at least once in winter to empty their scent glands. They do have to eat something, after all, and their food can be a lot harder to come by in winter. If the weather allows, they may briefly leave the den for some nighttime foraging. They enter a state of torpor when their body temperature, breathing and metabolism drop, but not as severely as in hibernation.ĭuring this state, skunks will wake up periodically. During the coldest part of the winter, they stay in their dens, become relatively inactive, eat little and sleep a lot. Striped skunks don’t actually hibernate, but they do slow down. Having trouble with skunks tearing up your yard and wondering whether this is going to go on all winter, or are the skunks just getting ready to hibernate? Some believe females group together and males group together, because it has been observed females will not tolerate males at any time except mating season. Even though squirrels can be territorial, this trait drops out when the weather turns bad. This sleeping arrangement carries over into adulthood. The main way squirrels stay warm in winter, and how they manage to survive, is a characteristic they learned as babies, sleeping in a ball of bodies to keep each other warm. When I say that they stay hunkered down with friends during bitter cold weather, that’s exactly what they do. When there is a break in the weather, they head out in search of the stash of food they hid in the warmer months. But they also do not like bitter cold weather, so they will stay hunkered down in their den when it is really cold, opting to stay warm with friends rather than venture out. Tree squirrels, which is what we see most in London, do not hibernate in winter. They may be the bane of my existence, as they love to dig in my garden - stashing food for winter and then looking for these stashes later.ĭid you know a squirrel will find and bury about three years’ worth of food every summer and fall? They really are the ultimate survivalists.
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