Keywords
Rural
Skunk
How to Cite
Accepted 2025-07-13
Published 2025-11-08
Abstract
Scavengers play a crucial ecological role by consuming carcasses, a vital energy resource that is unevenly distributed throughout the environment. In north-eastern Patagonian Argentina, several native mammal species act as facultative scavengers, among them the skunk (Conepatus chinga). Its scavenging behaviour has been scarcely documented, as it mainly feeds on invertebrates. We report for the first time the direct observation of a C. chinga individual feeding on the carcass of a grey fox (Lycalopex gymnocercus), apparently injured and run over, on a rural road in Patagones County (Buenos Aires). The interaction, photographed in situ, took place in agroecosystems characterised by extensive agriculture, livestock farming, and a marked reduction of native forest, during a prolonged drought. The behaviour included feeding, concealment of the carcass, and marking with urine. This likely suggests greater reliance on carrion resources in response to food shortages, particularly during the species’ reproductive period. The importance of this finding lies in documenting, for the first time, the consumption of a member of the same scavenger guild by C. chinga, a behavior not previously reported. This opens questions regarding its role in altered environments and highlights the need to study trophic adaptations in landscapes transformed by human activity.
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