and#160 and#160 Īnd#160 and#160 and#160 and#160 and#160 and#160 and#160 and#160 and#160 and#160 and#160 īut thereandrsquo s far more to skunks than their stench, and with this beautifully illustrated entry in Reaktionandrsquo s Animal series, Alyce Miller gives these furry scavengers their due. and oh, boy, when they do it, no one can ignore them. But then thereandrsquo s that thing they do. Solitary, nocturnal creatures, skunks generally go about their business unnoticed.

A bibliography of 2,925 references makes the volume especially useful for anyone wishing to do further research. Also helpful is the introductory section with its discussion of skull morphology, evolutionary history, basic taxonomy, zoogeography, zoonotic diseases, and the history of mammalogy in Oregon. Keys to orders, families, and species are provided for identification of unknown specimens. The authors provide range maps and lists of collection localities based on their examination of 55,265 museum specimens and brief accounts of morphology, species diversity, distribution, and fossil records. Descriptions of all 136 extant or recently extirpated mammal species in Oregon are in the book, with information on geographical variation, diet, reproduction, ontogeny, mortality, and behavior.

Indeed, researchers in states adjacent to Oregon will find much useful information regarding the mammals their regions share with Oregon. It provides a basic reference for mammalogists, wildlife biologists, students, and anyone interested in mammalian life in the northwestern United States. This is the first comprehensive, up-to-date treatment of mammals in the state of Oregon since 1936, when Vernon Bailey's The Mammals and Life Zones of Oregon was published.

Skunk by Alyce Miller