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NORTH AMERICAN FAUNA 66 



streams. It prefers forested, log-strewn, and bushy areas. At the 

 Patuxent Wildlife Research Center near Laurel, Prince Georges 

 County, Uhler and Llewellyn (1952, p. 84) found them along lake 

 margins, by a small stream, and along the Patuxent River. Bailey 

 (1923, p. 125) reported that in the early 1920's they were fairly com- 

 mon along the banks of almost any stream in Washington, D.C., and 

 that they followed Rock Creek well down into the city. Today, owing 

 to stream pollution and other factors few, if any, mink occur along 

 Rock Creek in Washington. 



Mink make their home under large trees which line banks of streams 

 along which they live. They also inhabit muskrat lodges or natural 

 cavities along the banks of streams, rivers, lakes, or marshes. Males 

 and females build separate nests, but females build more elaborate 

 ones, lining them with grass, feathers, and fur to make a snug home 

 for the young. 



The breeding season for mink begins in January and extends 

 through March ; the gestation period is variable, from 39 to 76 days, 

 depending on when mating has occurred; the later the mating, the 

 shorter the gestation period. Three to six young are born in April or 

 May, but as many as 10 have been reported. 



Mink range over a wide area to procure their food, which consists 

 of any reptiles, amphibians, small mammals, and birds obtainable. In 

 areas where muskrat abound, such as the muskrat marshes of the 

 Delmarva Peninsula, mink may feed extensively on them. Llewellyn 

 and Uhler (1952, p. 199), in studies conducted at the Patuxent Re- 

 search Center, report that it is usually difficult to get food-habits 

 material from trapped mink since their digestion is so rapid. They 

 state that frequently stomachs of the animals studied were empty, and 

 only digested blood was found in the intestines. They were only able 

 to obtain six stomachs and four scats suitable for tabulation. In none 

 of these was there any plant food except for a few poison-ivy seeds 

 which were found in a stomach that contained flicker remains. Pre- 

 sumably the bird had eaten these seeds before being captured by 

 the mink. One mink sample in March and another in December con- 

 tained rabbit hair only. Five other winter samples had 100 percent 

 rodent remains consisting of one meadow mouse, three pine mice, and 

 one "wood" mouse. In the two additional stomachs examined by 

 Llewellyn and Uhler, one contained flicker remains and the other 

 had a beetle fragment. 



The mink sometimes does considerable damage to poultry. Bailey 

 (1923, p. 125) says that he was told of a mink in the Washington area 

 that visited a henhouse and killed 22 chickens in one night and returned 

 the next night to kill 16 more. The following night, as the mink was 

 returning to the henhouse again, it was caught by a dog. 



