For many hunters and outdoor enthusiasts, “getting skunked” is the opposite of a good day. But for one Oklahoma State University survey team, getting skunks on camera was a critical first step in their three-year effort to learn more about the Plains spotted skunk population in southeastern Oklahoma. 

The survey’s first sweet smell of success came a month after the project began in Jan. 2023, when the secretive species was detected at six camera trap sites on the Ouachita National Forest – Oklahoma Ranger District. The team would go on to detect the Plains spotted skunk at about half of their survey sites and gain insights that can help survey teams in other parts of the skunk’s range.