Name:Mustela lutreola
Alias:Mustela lutreola,European Mink,European water mink
Outline:Carnivora
length:28-43cm
Weight:600-1000g
Life:6-12years
IUCN:LC
The European Mink (scientific name: Mustela lutreola) is a medium-sized mustelid with a total of 7 subspecies.
The European Mink is a wanderer, occupying rivers up to 15 kilometers in length and rarely using the same cave. Females usually stay close to their dens, unless food is scarce, in which case they will seek another home. European ferrets are solitary except during the breeding season from February to March, when they are breeding and need to find a mate, using hissing sounds and screams to spread the word of their home. Males usually look for females whose territories overlap first.
European ferrets are primarily nocturnal animals, emerging from their dens at night to eat small animals, including water voles, birds, frogs, mollusks, crabs, fish, and insects. This ability to hunt in water, on land, in marshes, and in caves far exceeds that of more specialized prey such as otters and weasels.
European ferrets tend to be very active contacts between the sexes before mating. The female's gestation period is between 5-10 weeks, and the pups are born in the spring, when food is plentiful in the territory. Female European ferrets give birth to 2-7 pups per litter and nurse for 5-6 weeks. Pups are born blind and helpless, so they are dependent on their mother until they are weaned at around 10 weeks of age and leave the nest at 12-18 weeks of age. The species reaches sexual maturity after one year and lives around 6 years in the wild and up to 12 years in captivity.
European ferret populations are subject to a range of ecological and commercial threats. Habitat loss and degradation are serious threats to this sensitive species in parts of Europe, and as of 2016, hydropower development and water pollution have increased significantly over the past few decades. Another major cause of the decline of the European ferret is commercial trapping for its fur. Although the fur of this species is less valuable than that of the American water ferret, overexploitation has led to a decline in numbers. In addition, the American water ferret, introduced in 1926, has created severe competition for food and habitat with the European ferret and has significantly reduced the population of this native species. Accidental deaths from pesticide use on farmland, accidental poisoning, and vehicle collisions are particularly frequent in the western regions where the European ferret lives. All water ferret species are also susceptible to Aleutian disease, a highly contagious virus that can cause persistent infection and often death. Due to these threats, the European ferret population is thought to have declined by more than 90% since the early 20th century, with small, fragmented populations that continue to decline.
Listed on the 2016 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species, ver 3.1 - Critically Endangered (CR).
Protect wildlife and eliminate game.
Maintaining ecological balance is everyone's responsibility!