Floating platforms have been placed to catch this European mink predator, which in Europe is in danger of extinction
The General Directorate of the Environment has begun the 2018-2019 campaign for the eradication of the American mink on the Atlantic side of Navarra. As in the previous campaigns, floating platforms have been placed in the Bidasoa, Baztan, Ezkurra and Ezpelura, Araxes, Leitzaran, Urumea channels in mid-September and early October, and will remain active until the end of March 2019 These control actions are coordinated by the public company Gestión Ambiental de Navarra (GAN-NIK) and are financed by the European LIFE IREKIBAI projects.
At this time, feral populations of American mink in France, from accidental escapes of fur farms, are the biggest threat to the conservation of European mink in this area.
The European mink is the most threatened carnivore in Europe today, and is listed as “In critical situation” in the Spanish Catalog of Endangered Species. The Iberian population, with just 500 copies, is one of the last redoubts of the species; already extinct in the center and east of the continent as a result of the aggressive behavior of the American mink, which attacks the European mink to expel it from its territory during the colonization of the rivers. It is also increasingly scarce in the rivers and regattas of the Atlantic side of Navarra.
Floating platforms on the rivers
For the detection of the American mink, a methodology has been used for the control and eradication of this invasive species developed and perfected in projects carried out in the United Kingdom (Scotland). It involves the placement of floating platforms on the rivers, one kilometer away from each other, where the minks are detected first and then captured.
The American mink is accustomed to hunting going into burrows, so, when you look at these platforms, which simulate a cavity, you tend to think that inside you will find food. The animal leaves its tracks in a sandbox placed on the platform and warns the technicians that it has been hanging around in search of its prey. After a few days, and after the regular registration of the entry and exit of minks, technicians replace the footman with a trap.