Mink

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Mink
American Mink.jpg
American mink
(Neogale vison)
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Mammalia
Order: Carnivora
Family: Mustelidae
Subfamily: Mustelinae
Species included
European mink (Mustela lutreola) Europaischer Nerz.jpg
European mink
( Mustela lutreola )

Mink are dark-colored, semiaquatic, carnivorous mammals of the genera Neogale and Mustela and part of the family Mustelidae, which also includes weasels, otters, and ferrets. There are two extant species referred to as "mink": the American mink and the European mink. The extinct sea mink was related to the American mink but was much larger.

Contents

The American mink's fur has been highly prized for use in clothing. Their treatment on fur farms has been a focus of animal rights and animal welfare [1] activism. American mink have established populations in Europe (including Great Britain and Denmark) and South America. Some people believe this happened after the animals were released from mink farms by animal rights activists, or otherwise escaped from captivity. [2] [3] In the UK, under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981, it is illegal to release mink into the wild. [4] In some countries, any live mink caught in traps must be humanely killed. [5]

American mink are believed by some to have contributed to the decline of the less hardy European mink through competition (though not through hybridization—native European mink are in fact more closely related to polecats than to North American mink). [6] Trapping is used to control or eliminate introduced American mink populations. [7]

Mink oil is used in some medical products and cosmetics, as well as to treat, preserve, and waterproof leather.

Species

The American mink (Neogale vison) is larger and more adaptable than the European mink (Mustela lutreola) but, due to variations in size, an individual mink usually cannot be determined as European or American with certainty without looking at the skeleton. However, all European mink have a large white patch on their upper lip, whereas only some American mink have this marking. Therefore, any mink without the patch is certainly of the American species. Taxonomically, both American and European mink were placed in the same genus Mustela but the American mink was reclassified as belonging to its own genus, Neovison , though it has recently been reclassified alongside several other weasels into the genus Neogale . [8] [9]

The sea mink (Neogale macrodon), native to the New England area, is considered to be a close relative of the American mink. Its extinction in the late 19th century, was chiefly result of hunting for the fur trade.

Description

A wild male mink weighs about 1 kg (2 lb 3 oz) and is about 60 cm (23+1⁄2 in) in length. Farm-bred males can reach 3.2 kg (7 lb 1 oz). The female weighs about 600 g (1 lb 5 oz) and reaches a length of about 50 cm (19+1⁄2 in). The sizes above do not include the tail, which can be from 12.8 to 22.8 cm (5+1⁄16 to 9 in).

Mink fur stole Birgit Ridderstedt 1984.jpg
Mink fur stole

A mink's rich glossy coat in its wild state is brown and looks silky. Farm-bred mink can vary from white to almost black, which is reflected in the British wild mink. Their pelage is deep, rich brown, with or without white spots on the underparts, and consists of a slick, dense underfur overlaid with dark, glossy, almost stiff guard hairs.

Mink show the curious phenomenon of delayed implantation. Although the true gestation period is 39 days, the embryo may stop developing for a variable period, so that as long as 76 days may elapse before the litter arrives. Between 45 and 52 days is normal. There is only one litter per year. They typically have between six and 10 kits per litter. Litters as large as 16 have been recorded at fur farms.

The maximum lifespan of a mink is usually around ten years, but rarely exceeds three years in the wild. [10]

Diet

Mink eating a crayfish Mink with crayfish at Wascana Lake in Regina Saskatchewan.jpg
Mink eating a crayfish

Mink prey on fish and other aquatic life, small mammals, birds, and eggs; adults may eat young mink. [11] Mink raised on farms primarily eat expired cheese, eggs, fish, meat and poultry slaughterhouse byproducts, dog food, and turkey livers, as well as prepared commercial foods. [12] A farm with 3,000 mink may use as much as two tons of food per day. [13] [14]

Habitats

Mink like to live near water and are seldom found far from riverbanks, lakes, and marshes. Even when roaming, they tend to follow streams and ditches. Sometimes they leave the water altogether for a few hundred meters, especially when looking for rabbits, one of their favourite foods. In some places, particularly in Scotland and in Iceland, they live along the seashore. Sometimes they live in towns if suitable water is available. Mink may be present at all hours, even when people are nearby.[ citation needed ]

Territory

Mink are territorial animals. A male mink will not tolerate another male within his territory but appears to be less aggressive towards females. Generally, the territories of both male and female animals are separate, but a female's territory may sometimes overlap with that of a male. [15]

Mink at water's edge, Kenai National Wildlife Refuge, Alaska Mink in the snow.png
Mink at water's edge, Kenai National Wildlife Refuge, Alaska

The territories, which tend to be long and narrow, stretch along river banks, or around the edges of lakes or marshes. Territory sizes vary, but they can be several miles long. Female territories are smaller than those of males.

Each territory has one or two central areas (core areas) where the mink spends most of its time. The core area is usually associated with a good food supply, such as a pool rich in fish, or a good rabbit warren. The mink may stay in its core area, which can be quite small, for several days at a time, but it also makes excursions to the ends of its territory. These excursions seem to be associated with the defense of the territory against intruders. The mink likely checks for any signs of a stranger mink and leaves droppings (scat) redolent of its personal scent to reinforce its territorial rights.

Human uses

Farming

The American mink's fur has been highly prized for use in clothing, with hunting giving way to farming. Their treatment on fur farms has been a focus of animal rights and animal welfare activism. [1] American mink have established populations in Europe (including Great Britain) and South America, after being released from mink farms by animal rights activists, or otherwise escaping from captivity. [2] In the UK, under the Wildlife & Countryside Act 1981, it is illegal to release mink into the wild. [16] In some countries, any live mink caught in traps must be humanely killed. [5]

In February 2022, the US House of Representatives passed a ban on commercial mink farming following the global SARS-CoV-2 outbreak on mink farms, however it did not pass in the Senate so did not become law. [17] The ban was attempted to be enacted in an effort to protect public health in light of the COVID-19 pandemic. Mink farms pose the risk of producing SARS-CoV-2 variants that could be transmitted to humans. The cramped living conditions along with the high volume of immunosuppressed mink inhabiting the farms creates a highly hospitable environment for the SARS-CoV-2 virus. [18] There have been approximately 6.1 million mink infected with the SARS-CoV-2 virus, with three variants traced back to farms in the U.S, France, and Denmark. [17]

Ireland

There are three mink farms in Ireland, in Donegal, Kerry, and Laois. Mink farming was introduced into the country by two veterinarians. Three thousand mink were released by campaigners into the wild from a farm in the 1960s. It is estimated that there are 33,500 wild mink in Ireland. [19]

The Irish Department of Agriculture stated in November 2020 saying that the Department of Health had advised, following the detection of coronavirus among animals on a Danish mink farm, that the roughly 120,000 farmed Irish mink should be culled. Mink farming was already due to be discontinued under the 2020 Programme for Government but the coronavirus risk had expedited the closure of the industry. [20]

Denmark

Health concerns

Mink are among the animals that can be infected with SARS-CoV-2 and that are also known to spread infections among themselves and to humans. [21] Transmission of the SARS-CoV-2 virus from mink to humans was first documented in the Netherlands by way of genetic tracing, which prompted the government to bring forward to the end of 2020 a ban on mink farming scheduled to come into effect in 2024. [22] The United States Department of Agriculture confirmed that cases of minks infected with COVID-19 had been documented in Utah in August 2020. [23]

In November 2020, Denmark, then the world's largest producer of mink fur, slaughtered its entire mink population of 15 to 17 million animals to stop the spread of Cluster 5, a mutated strain of the virus, which has been linked to the animals and resulted in the infection of 12 humans with the mutated variant. [24] [25] The decision was later deemed to have been illegal, although the law was later changed in support of the action. [26] [27] Infections within mink were also deemed ancestral to a highly mutated SARS-CoV-2 strain found in Canadian white-tailed deer which subsequently spilled back into humans. [28] [29]

Similar to their role of a viral incubator in the COVID-19 pandemic, in October 2022, mink at a farm in Spain became the first observed case of mammal-to-mammal transmission of Influenza A virus subtype H5N1, an avian flu which had only previously jumped to mammals upon close contact or consumption or infected birds. The infected mink in Spain exhibited multiple new mutations when compared to viral sequences obtained from infected birds, one of which helps H5N1 to better replicate within mammals. [30]

Stereotypy

On farms, minks are placed in battery cages, a type of soft, metal wire cage that restricts their ability to move. This often results in a condition referred to as stereotypies, an abnormal behavior. These abnormal, repetitive behaviours are a result of keeping them imprisoned, and is similar to the deterioration of mental health in humans. [31] Stereotypies have also been noted to increase during human presence. [31]

To attempt to eliminate stereotypies in captive mink, the Canadian National Farm Animal Care Council has implemented regulations on incorporating environmental enrichments into mink cages. Enrichments are pen-related alterations or the addition of novel objects to improve the mink's physical and psychological health. [32] Enrichments may help reduce the onset of stereotypies, but rarely decrease or eliminate them entirely. [33] Leaving minks alone plays a large role in the prevention of stereotypies, and the animals' well-being. [34]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mustelidae</span> Family of mammals

The Mustelidae are a diverse family of carnivoran mammals, including weasels, badgers, otters, polecats, martens, grisons, and wolverines. Otherwise known as mustelids, they form the largest family in the suborder Caniformia of the order Carnivora with about 66 to 70 species in nine subfamilies.

A zoonosis or zoonotic disease is an infectious disease of humans caused by a pathogen that can jump from a non-human vertebrate to a human. When humans infect non-humans, it is called reverse zoonosis or anthroponosis.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Weasel</span> Mammal of the mustelid family

Weasels are mammals of the genus Mustela of the family Mustelidae. The genus Mustela includes the least weasels, polecats, stoats, ferrets, and European mink. Members of this genus are small, active predators, with long and slender bodies and short legs. The family Mustelidae, or mustelids, is often referred to as the "weasel family". In the UK, the term "weasel" usually refers to the smallest species, the least weasel (M. nivalis), the smallest carnivoran species.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">European polecat</span> Species of mustelid native to Eurasia and north Morocco

The European polecat, also known as the common polecat, black polecat and forest polecat, is a mustelid species native to western Eurasia and North Africa. It is of a generally dark brown colour, with a pale underbelly and a dark mask across the face. Occasionally, colour mutations including albinos, leucists, isabellinists, xanthochromists, amelanists, and erythrists occur. It has a shorter, more compact body than other Mustela species, a more powerfully built skull and dentition, is less agile, and is well known for having the characteristic ability to secrete a particularly foul-smelling liquid to mark its territory.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fur farming</span> Practice of breeding or raising animals for their fur

Fur farming is the practice of breeding or raising certain types of animals for their fur.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">European mink</span> Species of mammal

The European mink, also known as the Russian mink and Eurasian mink, is a semiaquatic species of mustelid native to Europe.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Influenza A virus subtype H5N1</span> Subtype of influenza A virus

Influenza A virus subtype H5N1 (A/H5N1) is a subtype of the influenza A virus, which causes influenza (flu), predominantly in birds. It is enzootic in many bird populations, and also panzootic. A/H5N1 virus can also infect mammals that have been exposed to infected birds; in these cases, symptoms are frequently severe or fatal.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">American mink</span> Semiaquatic species of mustelid

The American mink is a semiaquatic species of mustelid native to North America, though human introduction has expanded its range to many parts of Europe, Asia, and South America. Because of range expansion, the American mink is classed as a least-concern species by the IUCN. The American mink was formerly thought to be the only extant member of the genus Neovison following the extinction of the sea mink (N. macrodon), but recent studies, followed by taxonomic authorities, have reclassified it and the sea mink within the genus Neogale, which also contains a few New World weasel species. The American mink is a carnivore that feeds on rodents, fish, crustaceans, frogs, and birds. In its introduced range in Europe it has been classified as an invasive species linked to declines in European mink, Pyrenean desman, and water vole populations. It is the animal most frequently farmed for its fur, exceeding the silver fox, sable, marten, and skunk in economic importance.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sea mink</span> Extinct species of mustelid mammal from eastern North America

The sea mink is a recently extinct species of mink that lived on the eastern coast of North America around the Gulf of Maine on the New England seaboard. It was most closely related to the American mink, with continuing debate about whether or not the sea mink should be considered a subspecies of the American mink or a species of its own. The main justification for a separate species designation is the size difference between the two minks, but other distinctions have been made, such as its redder fur. The only known remains are bone fragments unearthed in Native American shell middens. Its actual size is speculative, based largely on tooth remains.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mustelinae</span> Subfamily of carnivores

Mustelinae is a subfamily of family Mustelidae, including weasels, ferrets, and minks.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mink industry in Denmark</span>

The mink industry in Denmark produced 40 percent of the world's pelts. Denmark used to be the largest producer of mink skins in the world. Ranked third in Denmark's agricultural export items of animal origin, fur and mink skins have a yearly export value of about €500 million. Kopenhagen Fur, located in Copenhagen, is the world's largest fur auction house; annually, it sells approximately 14 million Danish mink skins produced by 2,000 Danish fur farmers, and 7 million mink skins produced in other countries. Mink produced in Denmark was considered to be the finest in the world and is ranked by grade, with the best being Saga Royal, followed by Saga, Quality 1, and Quality 2.

Spillover infection, also known as pathogen spillover and spillover event, occurs when a reservoir population with a high pathogen prevalence comes into contact with a novel host population. The pathogen is transmitted from the reservoir population and may or may not be transmitted within the host population. Due to climate change and land use expansion, the risk of viral spillover is predicted to significantly increase.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wildlife trade and zoonoses</span> Health risks associated with the trade in exotic wildlife

Wildlife trafficking practices have resulted in the emergence of zoonotic diseases. Exotic wildlife trafficking is a multi-billion dollar industry that involves the removal and shipment of mammals, reptiles, amphibians, invertebrates, and fish all over the world. Traded wild animals are used for bushmeat consumption, unconventional exotic pets, animal skin clothing accessories, home trophy decorations, privately owned zoos, and for traditional medicine practices. Dating back centuries, people from Africa, Asia, Latin America, the Middle East, and Europe have used animal bones, horns, or organs for their believed healing effects on the human body. Wild tigers, rhinos, elephants, pangolins, and certain reptile species are acquired through legal and illegal trade operations in order to continue these historic cultural healing practices. Within the last decade nearly 975 different wild animal taxa groups have been legally and illegally exported out of Africa and imported into areas like China, Japan, Indonesia, the United States, Russia, Europe, and South America.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">COVID-19 pandemic and animals</span>

The COVID-19 pandemic has affected animals directly and indirectly. SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, is zoonotic, which likely to have originated from animals such as bats and pangolins. Human impact on wildlife and animal habitats may be causing such spillover events to become much more likely. The largest incident to date was the 2020 Danish mink cull, the slaughter of all 17 million mink in Denmark after it was discovered that they were infected with a mutant strain of the virus.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cluster 5</span> Variant of the SARS-CoV-2 virus

Cluster 5 is a designation used by the Danish Statens Serum Institut for a virus variant described by the institute in autumn 2020, in connection with investigations of SARS-CoV-2 infection among mink and humans in the north of Jutland, Denmark.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">SARS-CoV-2 in mink</span>

Both the American mink and the European mink have shown high susceptibility to SARS-CoV-2 since the earliest stages of the COVID-19 pandemic, first in mink farms across Europe, followed by mink farms in the United States. Mortality has been extremely high among mink, with 35–55% of infected adult animals dying from COVID-19 in a study of farmed mink in the U.S. state of Utah.

<i>Neogale</i> Genus of mustelids

Neogale is a genus of carnivorous, highly active small mammals belonging to the Mustelidae family. Neogale contains four species: the Amazon weasel, the long and short-tailed weasels, and the American mink. Native to the Americas, members of the genus can be found as far north as Alaska and as far south as Argentina and Bolivia. Across this distribution, they thrive in a range of habitats, from the deep-freezes of the Alaskan and Canadian boreal forests to the arid desert southwest, and from the humid tropics of Central and South America to the windswept foothills of the Andes and northern Patagonia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">SARS-CoV-2 in white-tailed deer</span>

Blood samples gathered by USDA researchers in 2021 showed that 40% of sampled white-tailed deer demonstrated evidence of SARS-CoV-2 antibodies, with the highest percentages in Michigan, at 67%, and Pennsylvania, at 44%. A later study by Penn State University and wildlife officials in Iowa showed that up to 80% of Iowa deer sampled from April 2020 through January 2021 had tested positive for active SARS-CoV-2 infection, rather than solely antibodies from prior infection. This data, confirmed by the National Veterinary Services Laboratory, alerted scientists to the possibility that white-tailed deer had become a natural reservoir for the coronavirus, serving as a potential "variant factory" for eventual retransmission back into humans.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Domestic mink</span> Domesticated carnivore bred for hunting and pest control

Domestic mink, also known as domestic American mink, are a domesticated, carnivorous mammal, bred for hunting and pest control. Domestic mink differ from their wild ancestors, the American mink, in fur colour, size, thicker pelts, and higher tranquility. Domesticated mink come from fur farms, and are the most common animal raised for their fur, with over 50 million ones farmed annually. Debate has occured whether the domestic mink is domesticated or not.

References

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  2. 1 2 "Animal rights group claims responsibility for mink release". BBC News. 9 August 1998.
  3. ↑ "Mink in Britain | Learn about American Mink in the UK – Game and Wildlife Conservation Trust". www.gwct.org.uk. Retrieved 20 April 2021.
  4. ↑ "Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981". Legislation.gov.uk. Retrieved 28 February 2017.
  5. 1 2 "Dispatching a live-caught mink - Game and Wildlife Conservation Trust". Gwct.org.uk. Retrieved 28 February 2017.
  6. ↑ Lodé, T.; Guiral, G.; Peltier, D. (2005). "European mink-polecat hybridisation events: hazards from natural process?". Journal of Heredity. 96 (2): 1–8. doi: 10.1093/jhered/esi021 . PMID   15653561.
  7. ↑ Haworth, Jenny (3 February 2009) "National cull may exterminate UK mink". Edinburgh. The Scotsman.
  8. ↑ "ITIS Standard Report - Error". 27 September 2006. Archived from the original on 27 September 2006.
  9. ↑ Patterson, Bruce D.; Ramírez-Chaves, Héctor E.; Vilela, Júlio F.; Soares, André E. R.; Grewe, Felix (2021). "On the nomenclature of the American clade of weasels (Carnivora: Mustelidae)". Journal of Animal Diversity. 3 (2): 1–8. doi: 10.52547/JAD.2021.3.2.1 . ISSN   2676-685X. S2CID   236299740.
  10. ↑ Schlimme, Kurt. "ADW: Neovison vison: INFORMATION". Animaldiversity.ummz.umich.edu. Retrieved 28 February 2017.
  11. ↑ Burns, John (2008). "Mink," Alaska Department of Fish & Game.
  12. ↑ "Commodity, Mink" (PDF). British Columbia Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Fisheries. January 2004. Archived from the original (PDF) on 11 June 2011.
  13. ↑ Helgeson, Baird. "Despite Controversy, Fur Farming Rather Mundane". Fur Commission USA. Archived from the original on 18 June 2002.
  14. ↑ "Fur farming in the United States" (PDF). Fur Commission USA. Archived from the original (PDF) on 14 March 2003.
  15. ↑ Zabala, Jabi; Zuberogoitia, Iñigo; Martínez-Climent, José Antonio (2007). "Spacing pattern, intersexual competition and niche segregation in American mink". Annales Zoologici Fennici. 44 (4). Finnish Zoological and Botanical Publishing Board: 249–258. ISSN   0003-455X. JSTOR   23736769 . Retrieved 2 December 2021.
  16. ↑ "Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981". Legislation.gov.uk. Retrieved 28 February 2017.
  17. 1 2 "U.S. House Passes Sweeping Ban on Mink Farming Citing Cruelty and Contagion Risks: Legislation comes after hundreds of mink farms experience SARS-CoV-2 Outbreaks". NASDAQ OMX's News Release Distribution Channel. 4 February 2022. ProQuest   2625297627 . Retrieved 23 February 2023.
  18. ↑ Chua, Jasmine (20 July 2021). "Mackage Owner Gives Fur the Boot". Sourcing Journal (Online). ProQuest   2553397514 – via Proquest.
  19. ↑ Calls for Irish minks to be culled amid Covid-19 concerns Irish Independent, 2020-11-10.
  20. ↑ Ireland’s mink population to be culled amid Covid-19 fears Irish Independent, 2020-11-19.
  21. ↑ Huang, Pien. "Dutch Minks Contract COVID-19 – And Appear To Infect Humans". All Things Considered. No. 25 June 2020. National Public Radio, Inc. Retrieved 3 October 2020.
  22. ↑ "Not fur sale: COVID-19 brings Dutch mink farming to an end". The Economist. No. 5-11 September 2020. The Economist Newspaper Limited.
  23. ↑ Cahan, Eli (18 August 2020). "COVID-19 hits U.S. mink farms after ripping through Europe". Science. American Association for the Advancement of Science. Retrieved 3 October 2020.
  24. ↑ "Denmark to cull up to 17 million mink amid coronavirus fears". 5 November 2020. Retrieved 7 November 2020.
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  26. ↑ "Denmark's mass mink cull illegal, PM admits as opposition mounts". The Guardian. Retrieved 10 November 2020.
  27. ↑ Faure, Yann. "Mounting evidence suggests mink farms in China could be the cradle of Covid-19". Reporterre. Retrieved 14 January 2021.
  28. ↑ Goodman, Brenda (2 March 2022). "A highly changed coronavirus variant was found in deer after nearly a year in hiding, researchers suggest". CNN. Archived from the original on 3 March 2022. Retrieved 26 March 2022.
  29. ↑ Mallapaty, Smriti (26 April 2022). "COVID is spreading in deer. What does that mean for the pandemic?". Nature. Archived from the original on 26 April 2022. Retrieved 26 April 2022.
  30. ↑ Anthes, Emily (8 February 2023). "Bird Flu Outbreak Puts Mink Farms Back in the Spotlight". The New York Times . Archived from the original on 8 February 2023. Retrieved 8 February 2023.
  31. 1 2 Mason, G. (1991). "Stereotypies in caged mink". Applied Animal Behaviour Science. 30 (1–2): 179–180. doi:10.1016/0168-1591(91)90103-5.
  32. ↑ "Code of practice for the care and handling of farmed mink". National Farm Animal Care Council. Archived from the original on 5 April 2018.
  33. ↑ Finely, G.; Mason, G.; Pajor, E.; Rouvinen, K.; Rankin K. (2012). "Code of practice for the care and safe handling of mink : review". NFACC.
  34. ↑ Mononen; et al. (2012). "The development of on farm welfare assessment protocols for fox and mink: the WelFur project". Animal Welfare. 21 (3): 363–371. doi:10.7120/09627286.21.3.363. S2CID   71246314.
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