Den site selection by eastern spotted skunks ( Spilogale putorius ) in the Blue Ridge Mountains, North Carolina

Eastern spotted skunks ( Spilogale putorius ) are a small carnivore of conservation concern across much of their range due to population declines since at least the 1940s. They are susceptible to predation from avian and terrestrial predators and utilize dens as protective refugia and to rear young. To better understand habitat requirements for this species, we radio-tracked 30 skunks to their diurnal den sites between the months of January and August 2018–2020 in western North Carolina. We measured den and habitat characteristics and used discrete choice modeling to assess den site selection by comparing used den sites with available den sites. Skunks changed den sites frequently and used a variety of structures for dens, ranging from ground burrows and rocky outcrops to tree cavities. Our top predictive model for male den site selection supported a positive association with low basal area, high canopy closure, closer distances to drainage channels, low forb and grass groundcover, larger den entrance sizes, and steeper slopes. Our top model for female den site selection supported a positive association with low basal area and rocky outcrops. Our results suggest that male and female eastern spotted skunks in the central part of their range may key in on different habitat characteristics when selecting den sites, and that predation risk, foraging availability, or ease of travel may be driving mechanisms behind this selection that require further investigation. However, cross-validation of our top models was poor, suggesting that additional research is needed to refine our understanding of factors that may be important to selection. Collectively, our findings in the central part of the eastern spotted skunk’s range echo previous studies highlighting the importance of managing forests for vegetative cover and canopy closure to enhance availability of potential den sites for the species.