Noxious Spray Deters Predators

skunks with black bodies and a distinct white stripe stand in a wooded area

Biological Strategy

Skunks and stink badgers

AskNature Team

Image: Tom Friedel / Wikimedia Commons / CC BY - Creative Commons Attribution alone

Protect From Animals

Animals–organisms that range from microscopic to larger than a bus–embody a wide variety of harms to living systems, including other animals. They threaten through predation, herbivory, defense, and parasitism, and they compete for resources such as water, nutrients, and space. Any given living organism commonly faces threats from a variety of animals, requiring strategies that effectively defend from each. Trout and other bony fish, for example, escape predators by having scales made of very thin, flake-like pieces of bone covered with slippery mucus. They also have behavioral strategies such as camouflage, fast swimming, and twisting and turning to achieve release from a predator’s grip.

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Mammals

Class Mammalia (“breast”): Bats, cats, whales, horses, humans

Mammals make up less than 1% of all animals on earth, but they include some of the most well-known species. We know first-hand some of the characteristics that make mammals unique, like having hair, being able to sweat, and producing milk through mammary glands. Another critical shared feature is a set of highly-specialized teeth. Unlike sharks or alligators, for example, whose teeth are generally all the same size and shape, mammals have differently shaped teeth in different areas of the jaws to target specific foods or foraging strategies.

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The anal sacs of skunks help protect them from predators by spraying a long-lasting, pungent liquid.

“The striped coat of the skunk is a warning to intruders that it can be offensive. If threatened, it will turn its back on the intruder and squirt a nauseous smelling fluid from its anal sacs, often with surprisingly good aim…any animal that ignores its black and white warning coloration may get hit, even at a distance, by a jet of pungent liquid which will cause distress for days or even weeks.” (Foy and Oxford Scientific Films 1982:79)