MINK - A DISASTER
Harry McEwan
The family strolled through the glen in Kintyre.
The children ever watchful, excited by the prospect of extra pocket money.
Their father had promised them 10p for every wild bird or animal they saw
and identified correctly. Unfortunately, at the end of the day the children
were disappointed. The once abundant wildlife in the glen seemed to have
disappeared, and very few 10p's had been dispensed. They had, however, caught
a glimpse of a small black animal on the banks of the stream but had been
unable to identify it.
This scene could have been repeated in many parts of Argyll and other rural areas. The small black animal the family had seen was a mink and its predation had been responsible for the absence of the birds and small animals in the glen. Had they fished in the river they would also have noticed the absence of fish, for mink have a wide ranging diet and are most versatile killers. They will climb trees to prey on birds and are quick enough in the water to kill trout.
Mink were introduced to this country from North America for commercial fur farming. Mink farming flourished for some time, but in recent years the lack of a market for fur products has caused nearly all of the mink farms to go out of business. While in business, the mink farmer did not have an easy task with his charges. Apart from contagious diseases, the ferocity of the animals was in itself a problem. They were distinctly anti-social and, given the chance, would kill each other. Domestication did not alter their natural inclinations or tame them in any way. Even after several generations in captivity they would bite the hand that fed them without giving the food a glance.
During the time when mink farms flourished there would inevitably be a few escapes. Then, when fur farming was no longer viable, many farmers, already short of money as their businesses failed, did not go to the added expense of exterminating all their mink. Instead they turned then loose and the little animals soon became firmly established in the wild.
Wild mink normally live for six or seven years and produce litters of five to six young. They have no natural enemies in this country and it is not surprising that in the past few years they have increased and spread at an alarming rate. They are waterside animals and are territorial, living along the banks of streams and on rocky shores. Apart from the mating season and when the mother is raising her litter they are solitary creatures, each occupying its own territory. In some parts. however, there are so many of them that the younger ones have difficulty in finding territories of their own, and are constantly on the move. Mink travel up to 30 miles in search of a territory.
Their presence here is really a disaster for our wildlife. They often kill in excess of their food requirements and appear to enjoy killing. They are seldom seen, except during the mating season, and the first indication of their presence can be the absence of waterside birds and rabbits in the area. In sparsely populated areas this may not be noticed and the damage to wildlife is considerable. At breeding seabird colonies mink will kill several hundred birds during the breeding season, eating only a few, and when this has been repeated on consecutive years, colonies in some areas have become extinct.
Mink are also a menace to domestic fowl and even ornamental fish. They may kill a large number of ducks or hens and take only one away to eat. Sometimes they will go to considerable trouble to gain access to an enclosure, kill a few birds, and though not disturbed, leave, making no attempt to eat their prey or to take their victims away.
Because they are not indigenous to this country, mink are upsetting the finely tuned balance of nature here. The number of predators able to survive in a natural environment is dependant on the number of prey species available, and where our indigenous predators have to compete for prey with the ruthless and versatile mink their numbers will be depleted. There is evidence that the number of otters has fallen on rivers where mink are present; stoats and weasels will also suffer. Mink have no natural enemies here, so human intervention is necessary if their numbers are to be controlled.
They have become so well established in our countryside that it would now be impossible to eradicate them completely from mainland Scotland. It would however be possible to limit their numbers, with a concerted trapping programme, thus reducing the damage to our indigenous wildlife. Local trapping during the breeding season at seabird colonies has been proved effective in protecting seabirds and allowing them to continue breeding. Up until the present time the control of mink has largely been left to gamekeepers on shooting estates, and concerned individuals elsewhere, who are able to dedicate the necessary time, energy and money to trap then.
I began trapping mink towards the end of 1992, when I became aware of the extent of the problem locally. It would appear that in the last few years they have become well established in Kintyre and for the last two years have been breeding profusely. During my first eight weeks I killed seven of the animals within four miles of my home in Saddell, and since then have trapped several more in various other parts of Kintyre.
The big conservation bodies are not fully addressing
the problem. Some of them have no policy at all for mink control, despite
the enormous damage done by mink. Others believe that attempting to control
them on mainland Scotland would be a waste of time. They state that unless
a specific conservation issue is involved they will not take action. Yet
the general problem of mink is an overall conservation issue. A great deal
of the damage they do to our wildlife is unobtrusive, and does not have the
obvious and dramatic hallmark which makes it a 'specific conservation issue'.
One thing is certain. lf our wildlife is to be protected, the number of wild
mink must be controlled.
No 33 Spring 1993
Page 3: Maceacherns Cross, Kilkerran Cemetery, Campbeltown
Page 4: Sheriff Court, Tarbert, 1683
Page 5: A Song for St. Clair on His Departure
Page 6: Rathlin // The Tory Hunters
Page 7: A Wedding at Kilchousland
Page 8: By Hill and Shore - from Mr. Angus Martin
Page 9: Daniel Kelly // Aedanus Scotorum Rex // The Auchenhoan Axe Hoard