New Mexico mammals

American Hog-nosed Skunk in New Mexico

Conepatus leuconotus

Not specifically listed under New Mexico's state-level conservation framework. Globally listed by the IUCN as Least Concern.

IUCN Red List status

  1. LC
  2. NT
  3. VU
  4. EN
  5. CR
  6. EW
  7. EX

LC – Least Concern

Widespread and abundant; not at risk.

American hog-nosed skunk walking through dry grassland at night, showing its single broad white back stripe and long pig-like snoutAmerican hog-nosed skunk walking across forest leaf litter, full body visibleAmerican hog-nosed skunk foraging among rocks and dry brush in ArizonaAmerican hog-nosed skunk photographed at night on a National Park Service wildlife monitoring camera, tail raisedAmerican hog-nosed skunk walking away through dry grass, white tail raised
Photo: RJ Baltierra · CC BY 4.0American hog-nosed skunk walking through dry grassland at night, showing its single broad white back stripe and long pig-like snoutPhoto: Juan Cruzado Cortés · CC BY-SA 4.0American hog-nosed skunk walking across forest leaf litter, full body visiblePhoto: James M. Maley · CC BY 4.0American hog-nosed skunk foraging among rocks and dry brush in ArizonaPhoto: SaguaroNPS · Public domainAmerican hog-nosed skunk photographed at night on a National Park Service wildlife monitoring camera, tail raisedPhoto: Jack Byrley · CC BY 4.0American hog-nosed skunk walking away through dry grass, white tail raised

American Hog-nosed Skunk in New Mexico, by the numbers

Occasional in New Mexico 114th most recorded of 176 mammals logged in New Mexico

93 occurrence records
50 with iNaturalist photos
Apr 26, 2026 Last seen in New Mexico

Records from 2000–2026.

93 total records count every New Mexico occurrence from GBIF and iNaturalist; the monthly chart covers the 92 records with a full observation date.

When to look for the American Hog-nosed Skunk in New Mexico

Most sightings fall in January.

92 New Mexico occurrence records (iNaturalist and GBIF) by month of year, 2000–2026. Shows when the species is recorded, not a guarantee of presence.

Monthly New Mexico records (table)
MonthRecords
January16
February2
March7
April5
May10
June9
July7
August5
September5
October12
November7
December7

Monthly american hog-nosed skunk occurrence records (iNaturalist and GBIF) in New Mexico, 2000–2026.

Seasonality

Year-round in New Mexico, with recorded sightings peaking in January, with a smaller rise in May and October.

Occurrence map

Where American Hog-nosed Skunk has been recorded in New Mexico

93 records mapped · zoom and drag to explore

92 New Mexico records mapped

Notable places to look

Park, forest, or monumentiNaturalist records
Mount Riley Wilderness Area 2
State Trust Land 1
Sandia Mountain Wilderness 1

Protected places with the most american hog-nosed skunk sightings, from the USGS Protected Areas Database plus named mountain ranges, good spots to look, not a full breakdown, so they don't sum to the total.

Where it's recorded in New Mexico

CountyRecords
Grant County 17
Bernalillo County 8
Hidalgo County 8
Socorro County 7
Doña Ana County 6
Catron County 6
Eddy County 6
Torrance County 5
Lincoln County 5
Santa Fe County 4
Sierra County 4
Otero County 3
10 other counties 14

The complete county distribution, spread across 22 New Mexico counties. Every occurrence record falls in one county, so these sum to the total. Counties from GBIF and US Census boundaries.

New Mexico records point toward the Gila foothills, forested highlands, and desert basins around Silver City, the Tularosa Basin, White Sands, and Sacramento Mountains, and the middle Rio Grande valley, central mountain ranges, and northern Chihuahuan Desert. Places with similar land and cover include Gila National Forest, City of Rocks State Park, Gila River corridor, though records show where observers looked and reported, not population size.

Year-round in New Mexico, with recorded sightings peaking in May, Oct.

Occurrence data from iNaturalist and GBIF.

American hog-nosed skunk walking through dry grassland at night, showing its single broad white back stripe and long pig-like snout
Full species profile American Hog-nosed Skunk Conepatus leuconotus Size 44.4–93.4 cm1.5–3.1 ft Weight 1.1–4.5 kg2.4–9.9 lb Lifespan 4 yr View the full profile

More mammals in New Mexico in the atlas

Data & sources

The data and visualizations on this page draw on these open sources:

  • GBIFCC-BY 4.0occurrence records behind the range map, elevation, and record counts
  • iNaturalistCC0 / CC-BY / CC-BY-SAobservations, photos, and audio recordings
  • IUCN Red Listattributed factthe global conservation status
  • Natural Earthpublic domainthe relief basemap
  • USFSpublic domainnational-forest boundaries
  • USGS Protected Areas Databasepublic domainthe named parks, forests, and refuges behind "notable places to look"