Populations of European mink have decreased more than 50% over the last 10 years for ecological and commercial reasons and are predicted to decline more than 80% over the next 10 years.
Populations of European mink have been in decline for both ecological and commercial reasons.
The primary reason for population declines is commercial trapping for fur. However, the mink also suffers as a result of habitat degradation/loss, water pollution, and hydroelectric constructions. The introduction of invasive species, notably American Mink (Neovison vison), has also negatively impacted European mink populations.
In the last ten years, a period exceeding three generations, this is inferred to have resulted in the loss of over half the population, and it is predicted to intensify in the next ten years to result in a decline rate exceeding 80%.
• Image | ©️ Paco Gómez, Some Rights Reserved, (CC BY-SA 2.0)
• Sources | (Maran, et al., 2016; Nowak 1990; Shalu, 2001; The Wikimedia Foundation, 2020a)
