Animal Tracks - Mink (Mustela vison)

Mink track. Photo copyright Kim A. Cabrera 1999.

Natural History of Mink

Mink are mustelids - relatives of weasels. Mink are bigger than weasels and are aquatic. Mink weigh one to three pounds. Weasels are usually about half a pound. They eat fish, frogs, insects, mice, birds, and amphibians.

Mink have brown coats with a white patch under the chin. Weasels also have a white patch on the chest, but it often extends down the underside of the weasel.

Tracks can be found where the water meets the shore. Mink live near creeks, rivers, streams, ponds, and lakes. Mink tracks show five toes on both front and hind feet. The front track often shows only four toes. Tracks are a bit more than an inch long.

Mink are usually nocturnal, but are sometimes active around dawn and dusk. These animals usually hunt alone. They do not hibernate in the winter. They continue to hunt, sometimes even traveling under ice that has formed on the river surface.

Mink live in most of North America, except the southwest.

The Mink and The Otter - A Story in the Tracks
Communication Among Mustelids

Otter tracks that the mink followed. Photo copyright by Kim A. Cabrera 2005.

One day, I was out tracking and I found this huge swath of otter tracks on the sandy river bank. I followed the otter trails.

Mink and otter tracks. Photo copyright by Kim A. Cabrera 2005.

Then the otter trails were crossed by the tracks of a mink. The mink tracks head from lower right to upper left in this photo.

The tracks of the mink changed course and followed the tracks of one particular otter. They were heading inland, away from the water, so I followed those trails. They might be up to something interesting to a tracker!

Mink tracks showing where mink investigated otter scat. Photo copyright by Kim A. Cabrera 2005.

This is where both sets of tracks ended up. You can see that the otter came up and deposited a scat in the sand. The mink came along later and must have smelled the scat. This caused the mink, who is also a mustelid family member, to go investigate.

Here is a view from another angle. You can see that the mink walked right past the scat deposit. Among mustelids, which include both mink and otters (as well as skunks and others), scats are used as a means of communication.
Perhaps this scat let the mink know it was now entering otter territory!

Mink trail showing where mink investigated otter scat. Photo copyright by Kim A. Cabrera 2005.

After checking out the scat, the mink changed course again and headed on down the river bank, following the otter trails.

Mink trail along the river. Photo copyright by Kim A. Cabrera 2005.

The mink's trail went under these plants and vines before coming back into the open on the other side. The mink then went back into the water. The walk on the sand was a short detour to check out the otter scat.

Mink Tracks

A pair of overlapping mink tracks in sand.

Mink track in sand. Photo copyright by Kim A. Cabrera 2005.

Another nice mink track in sand.

A perfect mink track in mud. Photo copyright Kim A. Cabrera 2008.

A very perfect mink track in mud. This mink exited the water and walked along approximately 1/4 mile of muddy shoreline. There was a lot of gravel and very few of the prints turned out this perfectly. This was the best track in the entire sequence. I made casts of the best tracks using dental stone, which is a great casting medium.

Beautiful mink tracks in mud. Photo copyright Kim A. Cabrera 2008.

A nice pair of mink tracks in fine river mud. This silty mud was deposited when the water receded following a rain. It is great for tracking because it holds details so well.

A set of all four mink tracks. The mink bounded on land and left its pawprints in sets of four, such as this one.

Mink Tracks

Track photo courtesy of Mark Seaver.

Nicely detailed mink track in mud at the river's edge.

I found mink tracks once along a creek called Bull Creek in Humboldt Redwoods State Park, California. They were almost perfect prints in mud. I made plaster casts of a couple of these. I have not found mink tracks in the park since then. They probably aren't as abundant in the area as otters. The tracks below were found just outside the park boundaries, along the Eel River.

Mink tracks found along the Eel River near Redway, California.

These mink tracks were found along the south fork of the Eel River in February, 2001. The site where these were found is the same site that is frequented by the family of otters that live near my place. It is uncommon to find mink tracks here. They are around, but are not often seen because of their nocturnal habits. Mink hunt near water. This photo shows a pair of overlapping mink tracks. The claw marks are barely visible on a couple of toes here. Early explorations of this area were driven by fur trappers looking for untrapped streams. They were followed by homesteaders and loggers. Mink were one of the furbearers found at that time.