Abstract
The invasive American mink has been a component of Iceland’s fauna since the 1930s. Hunting statistics indicate that until 2003 the population size was increasing, but thereafter decreased rapidly. The Icelandic marine environment has experienced various changes in recent years, including rising sea temperature and sand-eel collapse followed by seabird recruitment failure and population declines. Furthermore the arctic fox population has increased at least six-fold in the last three decades. Mink stomach content analysis in the period 2001–2009 revealed diet changes, and signs of reduced prey availability for this generalist predator, that were most significant in males. The most marked shift in composition was a decrease in consumption of birds. Our findings suggest that climate events, together with competition with increasing numbers of arctic foxes over terrestrial food, contributed to the sharp reduction in the mink population from 2004 and onwards. Despite their generalist behaviour, mink have apparently failed to respond fully to these environmental changes, and this susceptibility may benefit attempts to control their numbers. The results are relevant to the ability of top predators in general to cope with diverse ecosystem alterations triggered by climate change.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Arnott, SA, Ruxton, G.D., 2002. Sandeel recruitment in the North Sea: demographic, climatic and trophic effects. Mar. Ecol. Prog. Ser. 238, 199–210.
Asbirk, S., Berg, L, Hardeng, G., Koskimies, P., Petersen, A., 1997. Population sizes and trends of birds in the Nordic countries 1978–1994. In: Nordic Council of Ministers, Copenhagen, TemaNord 614.
Bogason, V., Lilliendahl, K., 2009. An initiation of sandeel monitoring in Iceland. In: Environmental Conditions in Icelandic Waters 2008. Reports of the Marine Research Institute, Reykjavík, pp. 145.
Carlsson, N.O.L., Jeschke, J.M., Holmqvist, N., Kindberg, J., 2010. Long-term data on invaders: when the fox is away, the mink will play. Biol. Invasions 12, 633–641.
DAISIE, 2011. Delivering Alien Invasive Species Inventories for Europe, https://doi.org/www.europe-aliens.org 100 of the worst.
Dunstone, N., 1993. Food and Foraging, the Mink. T. & A.D. Poyser Ltd., London, pp. 62–99.
Elliott, J., 1994. Quantitative Ecology and the Brown Trout. Oxford University Press, Oxford.
Gardarsson, A., 2006. Recent changes in Icelandic cliff birds (In Icelandic). Bliki 27, 13–22.
Gardarsson, A., 2009. Numbers of common eider, long-tailed duck, red-breasted merganser and mallard, wintering on the coast of Iceland. (In Icelandic with an English summary). Bliki 30, 49–54.
Gerell, R., 1968. Food habits of the mink (Mustela vison) in Sweden. Viltrevy (Stock-holm) 5, 119–211.
Hatun, H., Payne, M.R., Beaugrand, G., Reid, P.C., Sando, A.B., Drange, H., Hansen, B., Jacobsen, J.A., Bloch, D., 2009. Large bio-geographical shifts in the north-eastern Atlantic ocean: from the subpolar gyre, via plankton, to blue whiting and pilot whales. Prog. Oceanogr. 80, 149–162.
Hersteinsson, P., 1984. The Behavioural Ecology of the Arctic Fox (Alopex lagopus) in Iceland. Oxford University, Oxford, PhD thesis.
Hersteinsson, P., Macdonald, D.W., 1996. Diet of arctic foxes (Alopex lagopus) in Iceland. J. Zool. 240, 457–474.
Hersteinsson, P., Yom-Tov,Y.,Geffen,E., 2009. Effect of sub-polar gyre, North Atlantic oscillation and ambient temperature on size and abundance in the Icelandic Arctic fox. Glob. Change Biol. 15, 1423–1433.
Hersteinsson, P., Stefansson, R.A., vonSchmalensee, M., 2012. A Pilot Programme on a Local Eradication of American Mink in Eyjafjordur and Snæfellsnes, Iceland, 2007–2009. Reykjavík: Final Report on the Program‘s Success and Proposals for the Future. Ministry for the Environment.
Jonsson, J.E., Gardarsson, A., Gill, J.A., Petursdottir, U.K., Petersen, A., Gunnarsson,T.G., 2013. Relationships between long-term demography and weather in a sub-arctic population of common eider. PLOS One (in press).
King, CM., Strachan, R., 2006. Introduced species and the line between biodiversity conservation and naturalistic eugenics. In: Macdonald, D.W. (Ed.), Key Topics in Conservation Biology. Blackwell Publishing, Oxford, pp. 85–104.
Lindstrom, E.R., Brainerd, S.M., Helldin, J.O., Overskaug, K., 1995. Pine marten red fox interactions – a case of intraguild predation. Ann. Zool. Fenn. 32, 123–130.
Macdonald, D.W., Sillero-Zubiri, C. (Eds.), 2004. The Biology and Conservation of Wild Canids. Oxford University Press, Oxford.
Macdonald, D.W., Loveridge, A.J. (Eds.), 2009. The Biology and Conservation of Wild Felids. Oxford University Press, Oxford.
Macdonald, D.W., Sidorovich, V.E., Maran, T., Kruuk, H., 2002. European Mink, Mustela lutreola: Analysis for Conservation. Wildlife Conservation Research Unit and the Environmental Agency, Oxford.
Magnusdottir, R., Stefánsson, R.A., von Schmalensee, M., Macdonald, D.W., Hersteinsson, P., 2012. Habitat- and sex-related differences in a small carnivore’s diet in a competitor-free environment. Eur. J. Wildl. Res. 58, 669–676.
Nentwig, W., Kuhnel, E., Bacher, S., 2010. A generic impact-scoring system applied to alien mammals in Europe. Conserv. Biol. 24, 302–311.
Ottersen, G., Planque, B., Belgrano, A., Post, E., Reid, P.C., Stenseth, N.C., 2001. Ecological effects of the North Atlantic oscillation. Oecologia 128, 1–14.
Root, T.L., Liverman, D., Newman, C, 2006. Managing biodiversity in the light of climate change: current biological effects and future impacts. In: Macdonald, D.W. (Ed.), Key Topics in Conservation Biology. Blackwell Publishing, Oxford, pp. 85–104.
Simberloff, D., 2003. How much information on population biology is needed to manage introduced species? Conserv. Biol. 17, 83–92.
Skirnisson, K., 1979. Food habits of mink (Mustela vison Schreber) in Grindavík, south west Iceland. (In Icelandic with an English summary). Náttúrufræ[??]ingurinn 49, 194–203 (In Icelandic with English summary).
Skirnisson, K., Petersen, A., 1980. Minkur (in Icelandic). In: Einarsson, A. (Ed.), Villt Spendyr, vol. 7. Icelandic Environment Association, Reykjavík, pp. 80–94.
Stenseth, N.C., Mysterud, A., 2002. Climate, changing phenology, and other life history and traits: nonlinearity and match-mismatch to the environment. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 99, 13379–13381.
Stenseth, N.C., Mysterud, A., Ottersen, G., Hurrell, J.W., Chan, K.S., Lima, M., 2002. Ecological effects of climate fluctuations. Science 297, 1292–1296.
Thrainsson, S., Baldursson, S., Gardarsson, A., Gudmundsson, G.A., Johannesdottir, G.H., Marinosdottir, S., von Schmalensee, M., 2011. Protection and Restoration of Auk Populations (in Icelandic). The Icelandic Ministry for the Environment, Reykjavík.
Unnsteinsdottir, E.R., Hersteinsson, P., 2009. Surviving north of the natural range: the importance of density independence in determining population size. J. Zool. 277, 232–240.
von Schmalensee, M., 2010. Ecosystems in peril, part two: alien and invasive species in Iceland (in Icelandic with English summary). Natturufraedingurinn 80, 84–102.
Walther, G.R., Post, E., Convey, P., Menzel, A., Parmesan, C, Beebee, T.J.C., Fromentin, J.M., Hoegh-Guldberg, O., Bairlein, F., 2002. Ecological responses to recent climate change. Nature 416, 389–395.
Yamaguchi, N., Gazzard, D., Scholey, G., Macdonald, D.W., 2003. Concentrations and hazard assessment of PCBs, organochlorine pesticides and mercury in fish species from the upper Thames: river pollution and its potential effects on top predators. Chemosphere 50, 265–273.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Magnusdottir, R., von Schmalensee, M., Stefansson, R.A. et al. A foe in woe: American mink (Neovison vison) diet changes during a population decrease. Mamm Biol 79, 58–63 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.mambio.2013.08.002
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.mambio.2013.08.002