Kleeberg, B.A., Lonsinger, R.C. and Fairbanks, W.S. (2024). WHITE-BACKED HOG-NOSED SKUNK (CONEPATUS LEUCONOTUS) OCCURRENCE IN THE OKLAHOMA PANHANDLE. The Southwestern Naturalist, 69(1). doi:https://doi.org/10.1894/0038-4909-69.1.9.
Abstract
The white-backed hog-nosed skunk (Conepatus leuconotus) is an understudied mesocarnivore thought to be declining throughout its range in southwestern United States. A live record of a hog-nosed skunk has not been documented in Oklahoma since the 1940s. We conducted a camera trapping survey in Cimarron County, Oklahoma during summer 2022 and confirmed the presence of a hog-nosed skunk in Oklahoma. This finding provides the first evidence of a live hog-nosed skunk in Oklahoma in nearly 80 years and is within the range of a poorly documented subspecies (C. l. figginsi) believed to be in decline.