110 Department of Conservation of Louisiana 



servation, sometimes lying for the space of a minute flat 

 on its belly, hugging the mud. At length it draws its hmd 

 feet far forward under its body, like a cat, its back arched, 

 tail curled then makes its sudden spring." 



The mink is perfectly at home in the water, where it 

 swims like an otter— so much so that scientists have pro- 

 posed that it should be given a Latin name, Luireola, sgni- 

 fying "little otter." The mink swims with most of the body 

 submerged, sometimes with only the nose above the surface 

 of the water, and it can progress under water with marked 

 ease and rapidity, and it is said that it can remain com- 

 pletely submerged a very long time without coming to the 

 surface to breathe. This ability to swim under water, un- 

 doubtedly, stands the mink in good stead when it races to 

 surprise such prey as ducks or other water fowl or other 

 animal life frequenting water. 



Audubon declared that a mink shot while in the water 

 sinks when killed, "as the bones are heavy and have lithe 

 buoyancy." He also asserted that minks release their char- 

 acteristic odor when fighting. 



When on a killing expedition, the mink frequently slacks 

 its blood-thirst on young muskrats. Selecting an inhabited 

 muskrat house by means of its keen scenting powers, the 

 mink digs and bites its way through the grasses of the 

 structure until it reaches the muskrat family, then through 

 the small tunnel it makes it gains entry to the nursery, puts 

 the mother to flight, and with rapid darts of its triangular- 

 shaped head destroys the mice with its sharp teeth. 



Therefore, the mink is the enemy of the 'rat rancher, 

 and all muskrat producing areas should be persistently 

 trapped for mink during the regular open season. This 

 should be borne in mind by those who have taken up marsh- 

 lands for the production of muskrats. Although it may be 

 desirable to refrain from muskrat trapping for a season or 

 two to allow the 'rat population to build up, trapping for 

 mink should be carried on persistently. 



Aside from otter skins, the pelt of the mink is the most 

 individually valuable fur taken in Louisiana. It occurs 

 throughout the state, being found in greater numbers, how- 

 ever, in heavily wooded waterbottoms and in cypress and 

 tupelo swamps. The minks found in these sections are 



