ken, James 1974 Mephitis mephitis Hastings Natural History Reservation, Carmel Valley, Monterey Co Calif 8 Mar 3PM. face running east-west behind N of Haystack Hill One indiv was spotted under a nearly oak (Q lobata) while I was checking a log for lizards it was apparently foraging by walking through the litter with its snout to the ground When I was spotted ~10 yds away it suddenly lifted its head in my direction and raised its tail to a straight vertical position A second later the tail was lowered to a horiz position but with fur erect I moved off 5 yds and sat down to write these notes The skunk held its position for ~30 seconds then turned to begin foraging again in another direction (See promalenty for other info.)