Spilogale gracilis (Merriam, 1890)

Álvarez-Córdova, Fernando & Fernández, Jesús A., 2021, Medium-sized and large mammals of the pine-oak forests and grasslands of the Rancho Experimental Teseachi in Chihuahua, Mexico, Check List 17 (2), pp. 669-681 : 678

Spilogale gracilis (Merriam, 1890)

Western Spotted Skunk

Figure 3D

Material examined. MEXICO – Chihuahua • 6; Municipality of Namiquipa ; 28°47′18″N, 107°28′36″W; elevation 2,121 m a.s.l.; 10 January 2019; obs. F. Álvarez- Córdova; UACH-CF-8176-8181 .

Identification. This is the only species of Spilogale Gray, 1865 recorded in Chihuahua. It is black dorsally with extensive white markings and a dorsal pair of white stripes beginning at the ears ( Van Gelder 1959; Verts et al. 2001). It is smaller than the two other skunk genera in Chihuahua.

Distribution. Southwestern Canada, western USA to Mexico (Baja California through northern Mexico to the TMVB; Verts et al. 2001). Recorded habitats in Chihuahua are quebradas, sierras and arid lands.

Remarks. This is the smallest of the skunks in Chihuahua ( López-González and García-Mendoza 2012). It has been recorded in three of the four ecological regions of the state; however, in the ranch, it is the skunk with the fewest records.