5-3,^0. 



US.DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 



ECONOMIC VALUE OF NORTH AMERICAN SKUNKS. 



By D. E. Lantz, Assistant Biologist. 

 INTRODUCTION. 



More than a dozen States have laws protecting skunks by a close 

 season. These laws were passed in response to the wishes of farmers 

 who recognize the usefulness of these animals in destroying noxious 

 insects and to the demands of persons interested in conserving the 

 fur resources of the country. A fuller understanding of the eco- 

 nomic value of these creatures would no doubt result in protective 

 measures in all the States. 



Several causes have contributed to the present scarcity of fur 

 animals. The increased demand for furs and their consequent high 

 prices have led to close trapping; but the extension of farming, 

 the reclamation of swamps, and the thinning out of forests have, by 

 restricting the range of the fur bearers, effected what hunting and 

 trapping alone could not have accomplished. The time is near at 

 hand when the supply of pelts will be so far short of the demand that 

 a further marked advance in prices will follow. Its effect on the 

 wild life of forests and streams can readily be foreseen, and the 

 problem of conserving the remnant of the fur supply and supple- 

 menting it from other sources becomes one of vital importance. 



The three fur animals still fairly abundant in the United States 

 are the muskrat, the mink, and the skunk. Of these the muskrat is 

 most likely to retain its numbers, since it multiplies rapidly and, 

 properly protected, is in no danger of extinction except where swamps 

 are drained for agriculture. The mink breeds but once a year, and 

 close trapping has already made it scarce over wide areas. Its 

 choice of banks of streams and marsh lands as a habitat aids in its 

 preservation, but unless given more adequate protection it can not 

 long survive the high premium on its pelt. The skunk, although not 

 yet in danger of extinction, is likely soon to be even more closely 

 trapped, as its pelt has great intrinsic value and the demand for it lias 



Note.— This bulletin discusses the value of skunks to agriculture, as destroyers of rodents and injurious 

 insects, their value as fur bearers, and the possibilities of raising them for their fur. 



38780°— 14— 1 



