One of the anglers at the Wigan Flashes trapped about 200 over a period of 5 years or so, a few years ago. Like Magpies, they have territories and as soon as you remove a pair another non-breeding pair move in. They breed in the stonework of the Leigh branch of the Leeds Liverpool Canal, in the fused cinder piles on Horrocks Flash and in bridges, drains etc - they like a solid tunnel to breed in rather than an earth one. They are rife throughout GM and goodness knows how many wildfowl nests and young they predate. DEFRA would do a lot more good targetting these rather than Ruddy Ducks - but Mink are difficult and Ruddy Ducks are easy.
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Judith Smith
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Lightshaw hall Flash is sacrosanct - NO paths please!
I remember that in the early 1970's a large number of mink were released somewhere in the Ringley/Radcliffe area, most were caught or better still shot. Some managed to get to the Irwell and bird numbers suffered.
I saw mink a number of times while walking beside the river birding for a couple of years after the release. I even saw one swimming across the Irwell at Salford cresent while I was sitting upstairs on a bus.
I used to do a Waterways Bird Survey on the canal from Stalybridge up to Greenfield and, though I never saw conclusive proof, it's a sure bet that Mink are partially responsible for keeping Moorhen numbers down. There used to be a Mink farm on the Mossley/Greenfield border and when it closed they released all the evil blighters. I've seen quite a few myself and anglers are always complaining about them. Earlier this year I witnessed one trying to catch a Dipper in Greenfield and they are suspected of raids on Dipper nests in the area. I understand that trapping and killing them is a tricky problem legally, but if Defra are happy to go round shooting Ruddy Ducks....
I do a Waterways Breeding Birds Survey on the Rochdale Canal and this year I have noticed a massive reduction in water birds. I always speak to the fishermen, as they are the few people up as early as I am on that stretch of the canal, and three different men said they had seen Mink when I did my early visit. Numbers of Mallard have gone down by half, Coot are no longer present, Moorhen have gone down and the Lapwings that had started to nest have been unsuccessful. The only up side to it all was that Canada Geese have also been affected, but this is not much consolation when all other waterbirds suffer.
On the plus side though, Lesser Whitethroat and Kingfisher appear to still be breeding and I even had a Peregrine fly over the canal on Saturday morning when I did my late visit.
We walked along the Tame Valley Way yesterday from Stalybridge to Stockport and saw very few moorhens, mallards or coots. A man who walks his dog every day says the reason is that mink have been eating the young, and the numbers of birds has dropped dramatically. IS that right, and if so, is anyone trying to control them? On the other hand, plenty of swifts. The Way, incidentally, is a very good way but the signposting is dire, so you need a good map and a leaflet or two.
