Striped Skunk Scat and Tracks: How to Identify Them (Mephitis mephitis)

Carnivore scat is tubular, often twisted and tapered at one end, and full of hair, bone fragments, berries or seeds depending on the season. Dog-family tracks show four toes with claw marks and an X drawn between the pads; cat-family tracks show four toes with no claws and a three-lobed heel pad. Many carnivores leave scat on trails, rocks and junctions on purpose, so where it sits is a clue in itself. The measurements below for Striped Skunk are quoted from the wildlife agencies linked at the bottom of the page.

• Shape: Ends are usually blunt
• Contents/color: May contain undigested insect fragments, berry seeds, hair, or feathers

• Front: Front footprint about 1.75 inches long, 5 toes, claw marks often visible
• Hind: Hind footprint about 2.75 inches long, 5 toes
• Toes: 5 toes on both front and hind feet; cats have 4 toes, which can be used to tell them apart
• Claws usually show
• Gait: Walks with a waddling, swaying gait, stride 5-6 inches, with an uneven track pattern

• Holes dug in lawns: Often digs small holes in lawns in late summer/early fall while searching for grubs
• Burrow/den: Often uses burrows abandoned by woodchucks, muskrats, foxes, or badgers; in warm months it also often rests above ground in stumps, buildings, or rock/wood piles
• Sprayed odor: Its scent glands secrete butyl mercaptan, giving off a strong sulfur-like odor

Skunks have 5 toes, while cats have only 4 The Domestic Cat page has its own sign list.

Put something of known size next to it (a coin, a pen, a boot) and shoot straight down in soft light; low side light brings out the shape of tracks in mud or snow. For scat, photograph the whole deposit and one close-up showing contents. Note where it was: on a log, in the open, on a trail, near water. The app suggests the likely animal; confirm with the size and shape notes above.