By Carol Felixson
Special to The Times
December 4, 2005

FIFI LA FUME, Pepe Le Pew and Flower are cartoon skunks you may have seen in movies or on television. The choice of names is a play on words because when skunks are threatened, they often spray a nasty-smelling liquid from scent glands under the tail.

Seven-year-old Matthew and his 5-year-old sister, Jessica, found this out firsthand. They got a whiff of one while on a trip through the mountains. "It smelled very bad," Jessica said.
Jessica and Matthew learned that skunks are the size of small cats. They have black fur with bold white stripes and large bushy tails. Baby skunks are blind and deaf. As they grow older their hearing gets better but their vision remains poor.

Matthew read that these animals are nocturnal. "That means skunks sleep during the day and are awake at night," he explained. They are predators. Their diet includes rodents, eggs, birds and insects. But in the cycle of life, skunks are preyed upon by great horned owls and red-tailed hawks.

After studying skunks, the siblings decided to illustrate them using an art technique called "glue painting." They outlined their skunks with pencils and added wavy lines to form decorative borders.

Jessica sketched a side view of her skunk and Matthew sketched a bird's-eye view for his. Then they drew on top of the pencil outline with glue. They gently squeezed the bottle as they went; lifting it up quickly at the end of a line so that it wouldn't drip. When the glue dried, they painted on top of it to give it color.

Good job, Matthew and Jessica!

About the series: Carol Felixson introduces children to a subject from nature and an art technique. She is director of education and community outreach for UCLA's Stunt Ranch Reserve and Mathias Botanical Garden. Next lesson: yellow star thistle illustrated in an ink blob and tissue paper collage. Previous projects can be seen at nrs.ucop.edu/reserves/stunt/newsforkids.html.

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Carol Felixson
Director of Education/Community Outreach
UCLA Stunt Ranch Reserve &  Mildred E. Mathias Botanical Garden
310 206-3887, nrs.ucop.edu/Reserves/stunt.html, www.botgard.ucla.edu
LA Times Science/Art Lessons for Kids: http://nrs.ucop.edu/Reserves/stunt/newsforkids.html

Contributing to the understanding and wise management of the Earth and its natural systems
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