I am quite sure that both live in MN, as they are plentiful in northern WI, the UP of MI, and upper MI. Heck, MI even has their larger kin, pine martins & wolverines!
Peter (see comment below), suggests a "fisher." It was neat to see. I live in Edina, which is as you know ritzy. But my window from my desk looks out on a dirt road and the Minnehaha creek.
(checked out the fisher) I may call my dad on this one- his family used to trap fur animals to supplement their income, & his knowledge of Northern Furry Beasties is almost 19th c in its completeness- he'll know whether it was likely to be a fisher, and tell you how nasty they are compared to mink & martins.
and yes, definitely neat to see- I've only seen a mink in the wild once.
Says nocturnal on the website. I'd like to know how nasty they are.
I'll be interested if I see it again. I've been here a month and this is the first time, although we've lots of birds, little fishies, and a family of chipmunks (living under the huge pile of turf that sits on the edge of the lawn).
Of course, I wouldn't have noticed it if it weren't for the birds dive-bombing.
Mink, do indeed swim. They are very adept in water and are skilled in easily killing muskrats that live in swamps and streams ( or your grandma's laying hens right in their cozy coop). Probably the reason we see a mink here [NeoG Family Homested] is because of the ponds proximity. I would bet for a mink because of the size (up to double the size of a fox squirrel) time of day and water/ land habitat. Had it been an otter (much bigger) it would have stayed in the stream (their real element). And, I agree with you on the martin or fisher (not).
yeah, it's stupid, but I think we've all done it. the whole things sucks, really.
and no, I figured it wasn't an otter, but the water narrowed it down some, I thought. if it was a mink, it's entirely possible that the birds were dive-bombing him b/c he'd just grabbed one of them- they're really fast, from what I hear- incredibly well-designed predators.
Darwin's Tortoise Dies (http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20060623/od_afp/australiaanimal_060623102146;_ylt=Ave_b4Ps2r9TGXqs5nZIVIoFO7gF;_ylu=X3oDMTA5bGVna3NhBHNlYwNzc3JlbA--zoo).
We have several members of the mink family that are native to MN. Don't know how many of them that are in the metro area. Without further description, I would guess fisher.
Not a bad guess. It was wet from the creek (or at least it looked very very sleek) and was definitely a predator. It needed anti-aircraft though to deal with the dive bombers (or maybe it already had its prey and swam off to eat it).
We've got high grass on our side of the creek bank, and plenty of fallen trees and such to hide in.
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Date: 2006-06-23 05:10 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-06-23 06:58 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-06-23 07:20 pm (UTC)and yes, definitely neat to see- I've only seen a mink in the wild once.
no subject
Date: 2006-06-23 09:11 pm (UTC)I'll be interested if I see it again. I've been here a month and this is the first time, although we've lots of birds, little fishies, and a family of chipmunks (living under the huge pile of turf that sits on the edge of the lawn).
Of course, I wouldn't have noticed it if it weren't for the birds dive-bombing.
no subject
Date: 2006-06-24 03:38 am (UTC)Mink, do indeed swim. They are very adept in water and are skilled in easily killing muskrats that live in swamps and streams ( or your grandma's laying hens right in their cozy coop). Probably the reason we see a mink here [NeoG Family Homested] is because of the ponds proximity. I would bet for a mink because of the size (up to double the size of a fox squirrel) time of day and water/ land habitat. Had it been an otter (much bigger) it would have stayed in the stream (their real element). And, I agree with you on the martin or fisher (not).
no subject
Date: 2006-06-24 06:32 am (UTC)And as a side note, insomnia because of NEXT years jobs, in late June, is stupid.
And yet here I am, awake, thinking about the job market. Gotta finish that thesis first.
no subject
Date: 2006-06-24 01:20 pm (UTC)and no, I figured it wasn't an otter, but the water narrowed it down some, I thought. if it was a mink, it's entirely possible that the birds were dive-bombing him b/c he'd just grabbed one of them- they're really fast, from what I hear- incredibly well-designed predators.
no subject
Date: 2006-06-24 02:00 pm (UTC)Amen!
Or praise Darwin.
Or something.
no subject
Date: 2006-06-24 02:05 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-06-24 02:18 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-06-24 02:19 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-06-23 06:42 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-06-23 06:57 pm (UTC)We've got high grass on our side of the creek bank, and plenty of fallen trees and such to hide in.
no subject
Date: 2006-06-23 09:29 pm (UTC)There are "lost ferret" signs posted around our neighborhood, which amuses me for some reason.