44 WATCHED BY WILD ANIMALS 
wins. When a skunk goes into reverse—thus 
runs the world away. 
The desert skunks that I saw were mighty 
hunters. Two were even willing to pose for a 
picture by their kills: one had a five-foot rattle- 
snake; the other a desert rat. There may be 
hydrophobia skunks, but I have not seen them 
nor their victims wasting their lives on the des- 
ert bare. 
Skunk character and habits evidently changed 
as the skunk evolved his defensive odour to a 
state of effectiveness. He now is slow and dull 
witted. Formerly he probably was mentally alert 
and physically efficient. His relatives the mink, 
weasel, and otter are of extraordinary powers. 
While all these have an obnoxious odour, the 
mink especially, the skunk is the only one who 
has made it a far-reaching means of defense. 
Skunks appear to be of Asiatic origin. They 
may have come into America across the Siberia- 
Alaska land bridge a million or so years ago. 
Fossil skunks ages old are found in fossil de- 
posits in the Western states. 
“Hurry,” called a trapper with whom I was 
camping, as he dashed up, seized his tent-fly, 
and disappeared behind a clump of trees. As it 
was a perfectly clear evening, this grabbing of 
a tent-fly and frantically rushing off suggested 
the possibility of his running amuck. But I 
