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Environmental activists rescued some mink and released them in a river by my parents house. Within a couple of years they had completely wiped out the local mo
by enochthered 5mo ago
Environmental activists rescued some mink and released them in a river by my parents house.
Within a couple of years they had completely wiped out the local moorhen population.
Nature is complicated
- ChrisMarshallNY 5mo agoMinks are really effective hunters. I think I remember reading about some anti-fur activists releasing hundreds of minks from a fur factory, and they caused havoc in the area. May have been in the UK. It was a while back.
- enochthered 5mo agoYep, this was in the UK. Moorhens are pretty dumb birds so they just got wiped out.
- pfdietz 5mo agoThe minks and fishers around where I live (Cayuga Lake in New York) are native. The bigger issue with wildlife around here is invasive species, especially plants. So much privet, bush honeysuckle, buckthorn, and multiflora rose. And many others.
- ChrisMarshallNY 5mo agoThe thing about predators, is that they tend to be spread thin. It’s the way they’re built. They are too competitive to form herds. Packs/prides, yes. Herds, no. Having hundreds in one area is insane (unless it's for special occasions, like the Baja hammerhead convention). You only see that in video games and horror movies; not in nature.
- pfdietz 5mo agoA good book that addresses this issue in the title chapter: https://www.amazon.com/Why-Big-Fierce-Animals-Rare/dp/0691023646 https://www.amazon.com/Why-Big-Fierce-Animals-Rare/dp/069102...
- enochthered 5mo agoLove the url for this. “Why big fierce animals rare?” Sounds like something one of my ancestors might have asked 30,000 years ago. Jokes aside, great rec