Feeding habits of three sympatric mammals in NE Spain: the American mink, the spotted genet, and the Eurasian otter

Trophic niche comparison of American mink and Eurasian otter under different winter conditions

“…The food niche shift between different winter seasons demonstrates that this predator can change diet almost entirely to adapt to varying weather and habitat conditions. By contrast, the Eurasian otter seems to have a stable and narrow niche regardless of environmental conditions, as also reported in other studies (Jędrzejewska et al 2001, Melero et al 2008.…”

“…The variation in diet composition and territory use compared between American mink and Eurasian otter was widely discussed in many studies across the Europe (e.g., Clode and Macdonald 1995, Sidorovich 2000, Jędrzejewska et al 2001, Melero et al 2008, Harrington et al 2009). Nevertheless, there is still not enough information about changes in the diet of these predators under different winter conditions affecting the availability of prey.…”

Diet of the American minkNeovison visonin an agricultural landscape in western Poland

“…The share of fish in the winter diet is lower than in other seasons because of short-term freezing of small rivers, while the increased occurrence of fish in spring and summer can be attributed to the drop in the river water level, or partial drying combined with overgrown by vegetation on the river. This overgrowth and drying causes fish crowding in shallow water, making them more accessible for minks, and these results reflect other studies in which minks foraging at small watercourses prefer aquatic prey (Jędrzejewska & Jędrzejewski 1998), and in which summer drying of the rivers led to a diet of mainly fish (Melero et al 2008). Third, the biomass of birds differed across seasons, being highest in summer (44 %), likely because of the moulting time of Anseriformes and coots (Rallidae).…”

“…The low share of crayfish in the diet probably reflects low abundance in the habitat (Krawczyk unpublished). Crustaceans may be a desirable food category for minks and can even become the staple food of minks, depending on their availability in the habitat (Previtali et al 1998, Brzeziński 2008, Melero et al 2008, Fisher et al 2009, Sidorovich et. al.…”

Renal vasography in mink (Mustela vison)

“…The American mink is commonly associated with vegetated areas adjacent to water [6,7] exploiting inland waterways and coastal habitats [8]. This species has been used as an indirect bioindicator of mercury contamination of terrestrial ecosystems [9,10], as well as a sentinel in environmental monitoring [11].…”