>...'ve no interest in opera.

My mom was a lower ranked opera singer in Chicago's Lyric Opera. NO.FUCKING. INTEREST.

The shed belly skin has long, straight, horizontal scales for pushing forward. Slithering locomotion works better with smaller & more micro-serrated edges on the scales.
Shucks, I ain't no herpetologist/ophiophile. As a roboticist trying to copy sidewinding/slithering locomotion painfully confusing

Yep. It's the shed skin of a snake that relies on sidewinder locomotion (rather the slithering motion).

In case you didn't know, skunks a major carrier of rabies in the States and don't have a great fear of humans. However, non-fearing attitude of humans is also one the signs of a rabid animal.

>"...a neighborhood kid hand feed a hot dog to a racoon, and I need you all to explain rabies..."

Mo' better for rabies-risk...

My neighbor has a large black&white "tuxedo" cat. Coming home late night, I pat the friendly tuxedo cat on my front step only to learn to next day the cat is at the vet.🦨