171 FAMILIAR LIFE IN FIELD AND FOREST. 



into a prominent nipplelike papilla that is capable of 

 being protruded from the anus, and by means of 

 which the direction of the jet is governed. The secre- 

 tion is a clear fluid, amber or gold-yellow in color, 

 has an intensely acid reaction, and in the evening is 

 slightly luminous. On standing in a bottle, a floccu- 

 lent whitish precipitate separates and falls to the bot- 

 tom. The fluid sometimes shows a greenish cast, and 

 it always possesses an odor that is characteristic and 

 in some respects unique. Its all-pervading, penetrat- 

 ing, and lasting properties are too well known to re- 

 quire more than a passing comment. A well-closed 

 house in winter became permeated by the scent with- 

 in five minutes' time after a skunk had been killed at 

 a distance of nearly twenty rods. The more humid 

 the air is and the higher the temperature, the farther 

 the scent is discernible and the longer it lasts. Un- 

 der favorable conditions it is certainly distinctly rec- 

 ognizable at the distance of a mile. De Kay quotes a 

 statement from the Medical Repository that a Dr. 

 Wiley, of Block Island, distinctly perceived the smell 

 of a skunk although the nearest land was twenty 

 miles distant. 



" The marked difference in the intensity of the 

 scent in different skunks is chiefly due to the age of 

 the particular animal from which it emanates. It 

 is quite overpowering when there has been no dis- 



