American Mink

Physical Features

The American Mink belongs to the weasel family and they have a long weasel-like body with short legs and a bushy tail. Their coat is medium to dark brown in color and they have a white chin and often white spots along their belly. Their fur is very soft, thick, glossy, and water repellant and provides them with warmth and protection. Minks have semi-webbed feet that are suitable for swimming and their toes end with small, sharp claws. They have long whiskers, small rounded eyes, and small fuzzy ears. The males are about 20% larger in size than the females and weigh between 2 to 3.5 pounds, with a 2-feet long body.

Habitat

American Minks live near water and are found near riverbanks, lakes, streams and marshes, while in coastal areas they are found along the seashore. It is common for them to follow streams and ditches when roaming about. They usually only leave water when they are in search of food but return soon thereafter. It is possible to find them in towns provided they have a water source nearby. They live in hollow logs, abandoned beaver or muskrat dens, or they may dig their own burrow. Their natural range encompasses North America from Alaska and Canada through the United States excluding Arizona and the more arid areas of California, Nevada, Utah, New Mexico, and western Texas.

Diet

The American Mink is carnivorous and feeds on rodents, fish, crustaceans, frogs, birds, rabbits and insects. During the winter their main source of food is fish due to the fact that the fish become torpid and are easier to catch. They are also known for killing more than their fair share, but they keep the excess as reserves.

Meat

Minks are considered the most valuable fur animal. The American Mink's fur has been highly prized for its use in clothing. Although they were previously heavily hunted, they are now being farmed and this has become a successful commercial industry. Mink oil is used in some medical products and cosmetics, as well as to treat, preserve and waterproof leather. In the wild, minks are considered, by some to be pests since they are known to raid poultry.

Behavior

American Minks are aquatic and they are excellent swimmers. They are nocturnal creatures, but they can often be seen scurrying about during daylight hours. Minks are solitary, territorial animals and they are intolerant of other minks. Both males and females mark their territory with feces covered in scent produced by the proctodeal glands. They produce a pungent scent that is more unbearable than that of a skunk. As a means of defense and when they are stressed, they are capable of expelling this scent a distance over 30cm. They also secrete scent on the throat and chest area, which they rub onto, sticks and rocks. The American Mink has few natural predators but fox, coyote, and owls can attack it. The American Mink is a promiscuous animal and the female mates with as many males as possible. Minks exhibit the curious phenomenon of delayed implantation. This allows pregnant minks to keep track of environmental conditions and select an ideal time and place for parturition. Their gestation period varies due to delayed implantation of the embryo but is usually 30 to 79 days. They usually give birth to two to six young but there can be as many as ten in the litter. They only produce one litter a year. Newborns are wrinkled, pink, blind and deaf, but open their eyes after 25 days, with weaning occurring after five weeks. The kits begin hunting after eight weeks of age, but stay close to their mother until they become independent and sexually mature after 10 months of age. In times of overpopulation, minks control their own numbers by either killing each other through direct conflict or by causing weaker mink to be driven away from their territory until starvation sets in.

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