236 WILD NEIGHBORS CHAP. 
like appendage — is glaring white. Conspicuous? 
You can see it bobbing along above the grass 
as far away as you can see anything of its size, 
and know that “one o’ thim pesky skoonks”’ is 
wandering through the meadow when his body 
is entirely concealed. So strong an example as 
this has been quickly seized upon, of course, by 
the Darwinians as an example of the effect of 
natural selection in automatically producing ser- 
viceable colors; but perhaps the display does 
not prove ‘as useful to the skunk’s welfare as 
some less striking pattern would be. In his 
highly interesting little book on Nicaragua, for 
example, Belt remarks that “at night the skunk 
goes leisurely along, holding up his white tail 
as a danger-flag for none to come within range 
of his dangerous artillery”; and adds: “The 
animal is not likely to be pounced upon by any 
of the carnivora mistaking it for other night- 
roaming animals.” 
As a matter of fact, however, is it not “ pounced 
upon” quite as often as are other night-rovers? 
I do not recall at the moment a record of a 
puma having actually been known to have killed 
a skunk, but there is no reason to suppose this 
animal or the lynx or common wild-cat would hesi- 
tate to strike one down if he were hungry, — as 
when is he not? The stealthy approach, sudden 
spring, and back-crushing bite of one of these or 
any other big cat would be a method of attack 
