Concord, Mass.
1900
June 16
(No 4)
  The Skunks have been enjoying their annual feast
of Turtles' eggs and on a larger scale even more than usual
to judge by the number of shells I found to-day
in the barley fields & openings near Ball's Hill. I
had supposed that the Skunk discovers the admirably
concealed nest of the Turtle by his sense of smell but
something that I discovered this afternoon appears to cast
doubt on this theory. When I was last at Ball's Hill
(on June 3) I set out five plants of the orange milkweed
in the field near the wood shed scattering them about 
in different places and with a trowell digging deep
but narrow holes for the long, carrot-like roots. On
visiting them to-day I found that all but one had
been found and dug up by the Skunks. Neither the
plants not their roots had been eaten or even separated
from the loose earth that had been thrown out with them.
In each case the Skunk had gone to the very bottom
of the excavation which I had previously made and
in no instance had he dug other holes in the immediate
vicinity. How could he have discovered these small, isolated
plants scattered about amid a tangle of weeds & grass
and having found them why did he go to the trouble
of digging them up? It seems reasonably certain that in
some way he detected that the ground had been recently
disturbed (although I had packed it back closely about
the plants & had added a light mulch of dry grass to
protect their roots from the sun) & that he suspected a
Turtle's nest was concealed there. If this was so he must
have either confounded my scent with that of a Turtle
or not have used his sense of smell at all.
  Two Red-shouldered Hawks were soaring & screaming on Holden's
Hill & Pine Park this afternoon.
Skunks
&
Turtles'
nests
36