Diet

The American mink is a carnivorous animal; it hunts both in water and on land. It kills vertebrate prey by biting the back of the head or neck. To hunt fish, crustaceans or frogs, it tends to dive and hunt underwater. On land, it hunts birds, snakes, mice, various other rodents and rabbits, and is very keen on eating eggs in bird nests. In general, the mink will hunt anything that comes its way.

Habitat

They inhabit overgrown freshwater coasts and islands, and also live on sea beaches near river mouths. As long as it is close to water, the American mink is not fussy about its choice of den. Mink dens typically consist of long burrows in river banks, holes under logs, tree stumps, or roots and hollow trees, though dens located in rock crevices, drains, and nooks under stone piles and bridges are occasionally selected.

Important and interesting facts

In Europe today, the American mink has taken over the European mink’s habitat, making its smaller relative an endangered species. The American mink began to live in the wild in Latvia in the 1950s, and by the 1970s it had become a common animal near Latvian water bodies. The European mink has not been seen in Latvia since 1994, but the American mink has become the most common animal of the Mustelidae family in Latvia. The American mink has a long body, which allows the species to enter the burrows of prey. Its streamlined shape helps it to reduce water resistance whilst swimming.

On land, the American mink moves by a bounding gait, with speeds of up to 6.5 km/h. It also climbs trees and swims well. During swimming, the mink propels itself primarily through undulating movements of the trunk. When diving, it undergoes bradycardia, which is likely an adaptation to conserve oxygen. In warm water (24 °C), the American mink can swim for three hours without stopping, but in cold water it can die within 27 minutes. It generally dives to depths of 30 cm for 10 seconds. The American mink relies heavily on sight when foraging.

Information sources: latvijasdaba.lv, Wikipedia

Photo: redzet.eu