Molina's Hog-nosed Skunk

Also known as Andes Skunk, South American Hog-nosed Skunk, Chinga

Molina's hog-nosed skunks are solitary nocturnal foragers that use their broad, hairless snouts and elongated front claws to root out subterranean invertebrates across the grasslands and scrub of southern South America. When threatened, they perform an escalating defensive display consisting of foot stamping, hissing, and raising the tail before discharging an intense, thiol-laden anal spray up to several meters. Dens are excavated among rock crevices, burrows abandoned by armadillos, or beneath hollow logs, where mothers raise litters of two to five kits each spring.