Image
Ecology and Vulnerability
American Mink
Photo credit: Ivan M.
Scientific name
Mustela vison
Profile: American Mink ▾▸
Background
Mink can be found from the North Slope of Alaska to the southern tip of Florida (except for Arizona and parts of California and the Southwest, where conditions are too dry1). This wide...
Background
Mink can be found from the North Slope of Alaska to the southern tip of Florida (except for Arizona and parts of California and the Southwest, where conditions are too dry1). This wide distribution illustrates that mink are adapted to a wide range of climatic, vegetative, and geological conditions.
Climate Impacts
The mink’s wide geographic range suggests that it should be relatively adaptable to future climate change in the state of Massachusetts over the next century. However, mink are a semiaquatic species associated with water, with much of their diet composed of fish, amphibians, crayfish, muskrats, and waterfowl2,3,4,5. The abundance of mink is thus directly related to the availability of wetlands and water6,7. Climate change is predicted to result in increased short-term drought conditions, reduced summer stream flows, and longer duration of low summer flows in the Northeast, all of which have the potential to reduce the amount of aquatic habitat8. A reduction in the amount of aquatic habitat in Massachusetts could also reduce mink numbers.
References
1. Reid, F., and K. Helgen. 2008. Neovison vison. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2014.3. < http://www.iucnredlist.org/details/41661/0 >. (Accessed on 30 April 2015).
2. Brzeziński, M. 2008. Food habits of the American mink Mustela vison in the Mazurian Lakeland, Northeastern Poland. Mammalian Biology 73:177-188.
3. Hoffman, J.D., H.H. Genoways, and S. Wilson. 2009. Historical winter diets of mink (Mustela vison) in Nebraska. Transactions of the Kansas Academy of Science 112:119-122.
4. Shier, C.J., and M.S. Boyce. 2009. Mink prey diversity correlates with mink-muskrat dynamics. Journal of Mammalogy 90:897-905.
5. Zschille, J., N. Stier, M. Roth, and R. Mayer. 2014. Feeding habits of invasive American mink (Neovison vison) in northern Germany – potential implications for fishery and waterfowl. cta Theriologica 59:25-34.
6. Larivière, S. 2003. Mink (Mustela vison). Pages 662-671 in G.A. Feldhamer, B.C. Thompson, and J.A. Chapman, editors. Wild Mammals of North America, 2nd edition. The Johns Hopkins University Press, Baltimore, MD.
7. Wolff, P.J., C.A. Taylor, E.J. Heske, and R.L. Schooley. 2015. Habitat selection by American mink during summer is related to hotspots of crayfish prey. Wildlife Biology 21:9-17.
8. Huntington, T.G., A.D. Richardson, K.J. McGuire, and K. Hayhoe. 2009. Climate and hydrological changes in the northeastern United States: recent trends and implications for forested and aquatic ecosystems. Canadian Journal of Forest Research 39:199-212.
Climate Change Vulnerability Assessment: American Mink (Maine)
Ranking
Presumed Stable
Confidence
Moderate
Climate scenario
Not specified
Location
Maine
Time period
Not specified
Climate Change Vulnerability Assessment: American Mink (Michigan)
Ranking
Presumed Stable
Confidence
Very High
Climate scenario
SRES A1B (Mid-range emissions scenario)
Location
Michigan
Time period
2050