Trapping Using Mink rafts
Although trapping for mink can be effective on its own, it is much more effective and less time consuming to use mink rafts. A mink raft is a floating raft which uses a wetted clay pad to monitor the presence of mink (and other animal) footprints. Once mink have investigated the raft and have left scat or footprints, a trap can be placed under the wooden housing. Mink will generally be trapped within a few days. Mink rafts can then be moved to other locations to monitor whether mink are present or not.
Locating the trap
¨ Set traps where mink are most likely to encounter them – i.e. confluences of watercourses; inlets/outlets for ponds and lakes; where drains, hedges or fence lines meet watercourses; on or near notable bankside features such as weirs, old willow pollards, fallen logs or bridges; on islands, including artificial rafts; in or near culverts and so on.
¨ Avoid placing traps in the open, particularly beside public footpaths (in part to avoid theft, vandalism and distress to trapped animals).
¨ Avoid placing traps where they can be knocked or interfered with by cattle, sheep, badgers etc.
¨ Do not set traps in entrances to known otter holts – this is illegal.
Checking the trap
¨ Once the trap is set it must be checked daily (every 24hours) – this is a legal requirement.
¨ Ideally traps should be checked twice a day to release any animals which were not a target.
¨ The best time of day to check traps is early morning (mink, and many other waterside animals are most active at night). Removing animals in the morning ensures that they suffer the least exposure to light and heat during the day.
¨ Some landowners install a small flag device which triggers when the trap is activated. This can be a visual aid to show when traps are occupied.
¨ Non-target species (e.g. otter, water vole, stoat etc) must be released.
¨ Consideration must be given as to how other pest species are dealt with (e.g. brown rats) if caught.
¨ Once a mink has been caught, it is illegal to release it back into the wild, or keep it captive without a licence.
Dispatching mink
¨ The only accepted way to kill captured mink is a clean shot through the head.
¨ Shooting should be done with a 0.22 calibre rim fire rifle, powerful air gun or shotgun (note that many firearms require a licence or certification).
¨ Bullets with re-enforced tips are also recommended.
¨ To make shooting easier, use a wooden “comb” to corner the animal in one end of the cage.
¨ Once dispatched all carcases are sent to Aberdeen University for further research.
Mink rafts – rules of thumb
¨ One raft per 1.2km of river is recommended.
¨ Rafts should be securely attached to the bank and able to respond to changes in water levels.
¨ Rafts without traps can be monitored at irregular intervals (at least once a week)
¨ Once traps have been added to rafts they should be checked at least daily.
¨ Mink are usually caught within a few days of placing traps if footprints have been detected.
¨ Return rafts to monitoring mode after each capture or after a period of ten days without capture.
¨ Rafts last up to 4 years (if marine ply is used) and can be deployed when convenient.
¨ Rafts are also useful for monitoring the presence of other species such as otter and water vole.
¨ Occasionally you may identify mink traps on the clay pad and not catch a mink. This may be because 1) the mink has already died or 2) the mink visiting the raft was transient and has moved on.
