HONOLULU (HawaiiNewsNow) – A second live skunk in one week was captured Thursday at Honolulu Harbor.<\/p>\n
U.S. Customs and Border Protection staff initially spotted the skunk at Pier 1 on Tuesday, Nov. 11.<\/p>\n
The staff sent a report to the state Department of Agriculture and Biosecurity\u2019s Plant Quarantine Branch, and inspectors were dispatched to the pier.<\/p>\n
They set four traps baited with cat food around the area, officials said.<\/p>\n
Then, on Thursday, dockworkers notified inspectors that one of the traps caught the skunk.<\/p>\n
The animal was humanely euthanized, and a rabies test is being conducted.<\/p>\n
First skunk tests negative for rabies<\/p>\n
The first reported skunk this week was captured at Hilo Harbor last Friday, Nov. 7.<\/p>\n
Crews worked to trap it by loading a vehicle into a shipping container and using cat food as bait.<\/p>\n
The animal was later found in the vehicle\u2019s undercarriage.<\/p>\n
Hilo inspectors maintained the traps in the area out of precaution.<\/p>\n
No further skunks at Hilo Harbor have been captured.<\/p>\n
The captured skunk was also humanely euthanized and tested negative for rabies.<\/p>\n
Officials said it is not clear where the animals came from, but it\u2019s possible they hitchhiked aboard cargo ships.<\/p>\n
Other recent skunk captures<\/p>\n
Since 2018, on Oahu, four other skunks have been captured at Honolulu Harbor, while a fifth was captured at Kakaako Waterfront Park.<\/p>\n
At the same time, there have been three skunk captures on Maui, and one was reported on Hawaii Island.<\/p>\n
Why skunks are captured and euthanized<\/p>\n
Skunks are prohibited in Hawaii.<\/p>\n
They are avid egg-eaters and would pose a threat to the island\u2019s native ground-nesting birds if they become established, said officials.<\/p>\n
In the U.S., they are recognized as one of the four primary wild carriers of rabies, a fatal viral disease of mammals that is often transmitted through the bite of an infected animal.<\/p>\n
Hawaii is the only state in the U.S. and one of the few places in the world that is free of rabies.<\/p>\n
Sightings or captures of illegal and invasive species should be reported to the state\u2019s toll-free Pest Hotline at 808-643-PEST (7378).<\/p>\n
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