Editing Skunk (section)

===Reproduction===

[[File:Female skunk with young.webm|thumb|Female skunk with young]]
[[File:Young skunk.webm|thumb|thumbtime=30|Young skunk foraging in a backyard.]]

Skunks mate in early spring and are [[Polygyny in animals|polygynous]] (that is, successful males are uninhibited from mating with additional females).

Before giving birth (usually in May), the female excavates a den to house her litter of four to seven kits.

Skunks are [[placenta]]l, with a gestation period of about 66 days.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ipm.ucdavis.edu/PMG/PESTNOTES/pn74118.html|title=Skunks Management Guidelines|website=Ipm.ucdavis.edu}}</ref>

When born, skunk kits are blind and deaf, but already covered by a soft layer of fur. About three weeks after birth, they first open their eyes; the kits are weaned about two months after birth. They generally stay with their mother until they are ready to mate, roughly at one year of age.

The mother is protective of her kits, spraying at any sign of danger. The male plays no part in raising the young.<ref>{{cite web |title=Eastern Spotted Skunk |url=https://nature.mdc.mo.gov/discover-nature/field-guide/eastern-spotted-skunk |website=Missouri Department of Conservation |access-date=23 February 2019}}</ref>