American mink face Highland clearance to protect their prey

WILD mink are to be cleared from the Highlands in a bid by conservationists to protect native species from the predatory American invader.

Mink were introduced to Scotland in the 1950s to be farmed for their fur. But escapees have spread across rivers and wetlands, feeding on fish, including salmon, as well as the eggs of ground-nesting birds such as greenshank, lapwing, and corncrakes, the birds themselves, small mammals and even poultry from farms.

Now they are to be captured one by one and culled.

Almost 1 million has been raised to allow the project, run by agencies including the Rivers and Fisheries Trusts of Scotland, Scottish Wildlife Trust, University of Aberdeen and Scottish Natural Heritage, to go ahead.

Mink will be tracked using rafts anchored in rivers and then checked for their footprints. If they are present, traps will be set, and captured animals killed with an airgun shot to the head.

"The American mink is a non-native predator which, through its hunting of water voles, salmon, and bird eggs and chicks, contributes to the loss of Scotland's biodiversity," said Paul Gallagher, habitats and species officer for the Scottish Wildlife Trust.

He added: "The decline or loss of these species could also impact negatively on local economies which depend on angling, shooting, or wildlife tourism.

• Mink - valuable fur

"This initiative is as much about economic concerns as it is about ecological responsibility. We are working to protect people's livelihoods as well as our native wildlife."

Conservationists will be alerted by volunteers and local rivers and fisheries trusts to the presence of mink, which are blamed for the more than 95 per cent decline in water voles over the past 50 years.

"This project will monitor the movements of the mink population using mink rafts to identify their footprints and hopes to maintain mink-free zones by strategically undertaking the minimum amount of control necessary and prevent further spread across the Highlands," said Mr Gallagher. "Animal welfare considerations will be paramount to our operations."

Chris Horrill, project development manager for Rivers and Fisheries Trusts of Scotland added: "Invasive non-native species, like the mink, damage our environment and economy. We can't afford to take the risk of losing parts of our biodiversity."

A pilot project in Aberdeenshire saw trapping lead to a decline in the species, while a separate Western Isles' project has seen 1,500 mink culled in the past ten years.Rob Raynor, SNH's species adviser, said: "By building on previous successes in the Cairngorms and north-east Scotland, the project will establish a strategic monitoring and control zone across the north, extending from the mid-Tay to the South Esk, around the east coast to the River Nairn, and across from Dornoch and Cromarty on the east to Ullapool on the west.

"As we gradually establish areas free from mink, we hope to eventually expand the zone southwards in future."