Road edges that smell like food. Skunks are opportunistic omnivores, and roadside scraps can keep them walking along the shoulder of roads much longer than they should. What Wildlife Rehabilitators Notice in Roadkill Every Year. This often requires road crossings. Because skunks are largely nocturnal and most wildlife is struck by vehicles at night, they are a common casualty. Young skunks seeking to breed for the first time may be especially vulnerable. Skunks are opportunists, plain and simple. If your yard is offering free meals, they will keep showing up like clockwork. I learned this the hard way when I noticed them returning every single night to the same corner of my yard near an old apple tree. So what exactly keeps drawing them back? Why does the skunk smell linger for so long? The thiol compounds in skunk spray bind to skin and fabric fibers, making them resistant to standard cleaning. They oxidize slowly, extending the odor’s lifespan for days. But in the last year about 12 skunks have been reported onthe East End. "It means the insecticides being used are not harmful to higher animals or are much less harmful than DDT was," a biologist with the Seatuck Foundation, David Duffy, said.