MINK - whatever happened to them?

[Jeff Woodhouse]

I keep asking this of people and no one comes up with any answers.

With all the calls for culls on otters it makes me wonder whatever happened to the big mink problem we had. No end of TV celebrities were calling for something to be done about them, but I don't hear anything any more. I've only ever seen one on the Thames, it came running along the concrete bank I was fishing from, stopped in front of my size 11s that were stretched out to the edge, jumped over and beggered off.

I'd have thought by now and with all the thousands that were released by idiotic mink-huggers that they'd be more common that rats.

Does anyone else still see them?

 

[paulvjwhite]

come over to fishers green on the lea.

 

[Morespiders]

All eaten by the big voles and barbel Jeff

 

[binka]

Yep plenty around the Soar, Kegworth area and spotted one at Newark only a few weeks ago.

 

[S-Kippy]

In value burgers when they can't get horse !

Seriously...used to see a few but haven't seen any round my haunts for ages. One thing's certain...otters will not tolerate mink on their patch.

 

[mark brailsford 2]

They could not compete with their bigger cousins and died out

 

[David Dalton]

Seen one on the Royalty fishery a couple of years ago, and one at Kingston on the Thames. As S-Kippy says, as otters have increased they have probably out-competed the mink in certain places.

 

[binka]

It seems to me going by the replies that there are still pockets that might be strong, another location i've seen them is Wychnor near Lichfield on the riverised stratch of the Trent & Mersey... I've never heard a rabbit screech until I witnessed one being chased and run down by a mink.

 

[richiekelly]

They could not compete with their bigger cousins and died out

Many a true word.

 

[tigger]

I see mink on many fishing sessions. If I don't actually see one I guarantee I see their tracks. I've see them killing rats and munching on them on my local river. There's that many rats on my local river I think the mink actually do more good than harm....freekin hate rats !

 

[dangermouse]

Caught a glimpse of one last year. Haven`t seen one since but given the number of rabbits near me I wouldn`t be surprised if there are quite a few mink.

 

[Titus]

A friend of mine is a pest controller, he was talking about this a few weeks ago. General consensus is the cold winter of a couple of years ago thinned them out a bit. The jury is still out on the otters and whether they can live in harmony with mink, but I know which one I would rather see.

 

[cg74]

Certainly in Oxfordshire there has been a very marked reduction in their numbers but I couldn't give definitive answer as to why. There is a noticeable lack of suitably sized prey, yes areas like the Thames in Oxford city is teaming with silvers but once out of the urban areas, small fish get pretty thin on the ground. As does the Windrush, Cherwell and Evenlode.

The upper Wey still has a fair number of mink, the same on the Blackwater. And when I last fished the river Bourne (Chertsey) about 3 years ago, I saw one.

 

[mark brailsford 2]

A friend of mine is a pest controller, he was talking about this a few weeks ago. General consensus is the cold winter of a couple of years ago thinned them out a bit. The jury is still out on the otters and whether they can live in harmony with mink, but I know which one I would rather see.

Otters do not tolerate mink...at all!!

---------- Post added at 21:06 ---------- Previous post was at 21:03 ----------

I see mink on many fishing sessions. If I don't actually see one I guarantee I see their tracks. I've see them killing rats and munching on them on my local river. There's that many rats on my local river I think the mink actually do more good than harm....freekin hate rats !

Yeh, AND they kill water voles too! A dead mink is a good mink!

 

[Jeff Woodhouse]

And here's me thinking mink went the same way as coypu.

That one is the only one I have seen on the Thames, as I said, and I haven't seen any anywhere else, but that could just be coincidence. Perhaps if there is a lack of prey fish/food then even the otters will die out eventually. That, however, leaves us in a very sorry state, a bit like fishing the lakes that were plagued with cormorants. We get it in the butt every time....

 

[binka]

That, however, leaves us in a very sorry state, a bit like fishing the lakes that were plagued with cormorants. We get it in the butt every time....

It does seem as though there is greater competition than ever from natural (?) predators and the pressure on their food supply which ensures their survival must be enormous.

It almost makes me feel guilty catching fish for pleasure.

Almost...

 

[bigfish74]

Mink are very very bad they will wipe out all wildlife from the river from voles and frogs to small birds and yes even fish we see quite a few when on the irwell its just a shame im not allowed to take the rifle i would love to get rid of them
Classed as vermin same as rats and grey squirrels so you are free to sholt the little buggers if only people would realise that setti g them free from these mink farms does more harm than good maybe they wouldnt do it but it will only continue as these people probably never look up on the problems or even step foot i to the countryside to see the results of their actions

Andy

 

[cg74]

Otters do not tolerate mink...at all!!

---------- Post added at 21:06 ---------- Previous post was at 21:03 ----------



Yeh, AND they kill water voles too! A dead mink is a good mink!

"Otters do not tolerate mink...at all!!"
How did you reach that conclusion?

"they kill water voles too!"
So do otters!

"A dead mink is a good mink!"
Regards mink in this country, I wholly agree.

 

[tigger]

Yeh, AND they kill water voles too! A dead mink is a good mink!

Yeah they kill just about anything they can overpower if they're hungry enough.
The biggest problem for voles is polution. My m8 does the eco studies for the canals and rivers trust (british waterways) and has and does do the water vole surveys, he reckons habitat loss and pollution are the biggest threat to them. Funny enough Mark the brown rat will kill many more voles than mink in a lot of areas. People don't realose the brown rat is a hunter. I've actually watched rats swim across 50yds of open water to eat the eggs and chicks of gulls.

One of the biggest threats to our wildlife is the moggy, people let them out and when they bring back birds etc they brag about them being good hunters. They also kill frogs and toadsslow worms etc etc. When I was keepering they where top of the most wanted list on the estate !!

 

[minkman]

I see mink most days at work. had 3 today there still about .