During the mating season, the sexual organs of female European mink enlarge greatly and become pinkish-lilac, as opposed to the American Mink, whose organs don’t change.
The European mink mating season occurs from February to March. In the Moscow Zoo, estrus was observed on April 22nd to the 26th, with copulation lasting from 15 minutes to an hour.
Females are polyestrous and achieve sexual maturity at about 1 year. During the mating season, the sexual organs of the female enlarge greatly and become pinkish-lilac in color, which is in contrast with the female American mink (Neovison vison), whose organs do not change.
• Image | ©️ Abujoy, Some Rights Reserved, (CC BY 2.0)
• Sources | (Maran, et al., 2016; Nowak, 1999, Shalu, 2001; The Wikimedia Foundation, 2020; Youngman, 1990)
