Where are the mink?

We used to catch 15 to 20 mink a year, but now we catch one or two a year at most. Why do you think this is? There is still plenty for them to eat, and nothing appears to have changed with their habitat.

Exactly the same thing has happened here. Ten to 15 years ago, we were regularly catching upwards of a dozen mink, which has now dropped off to virtually zero. Little has changed in the way of food supply or bankside vegetation.

My own unproven and unscientific theory is that it is directly linked to an increase in the otter population. As otters have become more common, mink numbers have declined.

Whether otters kill American mink or simply scare the hell out of them and make them move on and disrupt breeding patterns, I am not sure, but they are more than capable and are documented as regularly killing European mink on the Continent. It will be interesting to see where populations of both are in another 10 years from now. LB

The number of American mink seen in the UK may be affected by a rising otter population