Striped Skunks

Five young skunks live in this area, probably littermates. I haven't seen their mother yet. These critters are weaned, but they're still small and haven't dispersed yet. Most are the usual black with white stripes but one (not in these photos) is mostly white with black stripes. They come out at dusk to forage and dig in the dirt for bugs. They're unbelievably cute! They're also much less shy than I would have expected. On the three nights I've observed them, they let me get very close and mostly ignored me (I kept quiet and didn't make any sudden movements). A few times, one of them would get curious enough to waddle right up to me and sniff my shoe!