HABITAT ASSOCIATIONS AND SPECIES DISTRIBUTION MODELING OF THE PLAINS SPOTTED SKUNK (SPILOGALE INTERRUPTA) IN KANSAS

Author

Daniel Benson, Pittsburg State UniversityFollow

Date of Award

Winter 2-2-2024

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Biological Science (MBioSci)

Department

Biological Science

First Advisor

Dr. Christine Brodsky

Second Advisor

Dr. Andrew George

Third Advisor

Dr. Alicia Mason

Keywords

Mephitidae, threatened, Midwest, Great Plains, Carnivore, Mesocarnivore

Abstract

While once abundant across the central United States, the plains spotted skunk (Spilogale interrupta formerly Spilogale putorious) has experienced range wide population declines. In Kansas, the plains spotted skunk has suffered a particularly dramatic decline and is currently listed as a state-threatened species. Due to the deficit of knowledge on this species, we have paired a long-term, large-scale camera trap survey with the a regional, temporally discrete Species Distribution Model (SDM) to determine the ecology and presence of the plains spotted skunk in Kansas. We deployed camera traps for 40,393 trap nights across 29 counties between 2016 and 2023, resulting in spotted skunk detections at 6 unique camera sites. The last spotted skunk detection occurred in the state of Kansas in 2020, indicating a declining trend since 2005. Spotted skunks were found in locations with woody cover, and in landscapes with more grasslands and less row crop agriculture. To build a landscape-scale SDM, we used the R-based Maxnet algorithm. We trained the algorithm with spotted skunk presence locations between 1982 (i.e., year of state listing) to the most recent detection in 2020. The predictive map derived from our Maxnet model indicated only 7% of the state exhibited a greater than 50% chance of the plains spotted skunk occurrence. We found that spotted skunk presence was positively associated with landscape diversity and negatively associated with intensive agricultural practices. Overall, our findings suggest that, if not already, the plains spotted skunk may soon be extirpated from much of the state of Kansas.

Recommended Citation

Benson, Daniel, "HABITAT ASSOCIATIONS AND SPECIES DISTRIBUTION MODELING OF THE PLAINS SPOTTED SKUNK (SPILOGALE INTERRUPTA) IN KANSAS" (2024). Electronic Theses & Dissertations. 515.
https://digitalcommons.pittstate.edu/etd/515