Open their stomachs and see what they are eating (that time of year).. Assume the lab techs are checking liver concentrations of/for PPB or PCP or Lead or whatever chemical/element Michigan politicians are providing monies for now. Keep in mind that mink are opportunistic predators so in the summer their diets may drastically change and ingestion of prey species may or may not contain the the substance you are testing for (drinking water is a separate issue). That is where Seldom comes in with his mink knowledge providing real world experience to the pencil people with predictions using "T" tests and probability amounts in the environment obtained from animal sample sizes. You check YOY's and adults and try to account for their time in this sample area, weighing any exposure and dietary uptake in the conclusions. My experience .. ...................the mike

This Project concerned the extent & impact of decades worth of Dioxin’s released from the Dow Chemical Plant on the Tittibawasse R in Midland MI. The reason for the 5-year study was due to a 2000+ class action lawsuit against Dow. MSU studied all wildlife found on the floodplain and UofM did the human study. I mentioned all animals from bugs & worms up through the entire food chain. Mink were the most important animal of the Project because their lifespan was all in the floodplain.

Lab work would start down at the MSU Labs then all samples were sent to a lab in New Zealand of which there were only 3 labs in the world that could give the definitive analysts required. Though the primary focus was on dioxins, all contaminates were researched and analyzed. One of the 2 tribs I trapped has a Super Fund site upstream (DDT & PCBs), every mink I trapped on that river had cancer of the jaw bone. After the MSU work I was contacted by a Dept of the EPA person to trap mink for them on that particular river. After several meetings that fell through.

Wonderful insight guys, and thank you Seldom for the interesting read, glad to have folks like you on the forum. I did have some results this morning.

Good job!!!

From the pic, it looks like a female. If so, there will be a male or 2 looking for her soon.

How did you catch it?

Seldom you are one of the EF Hutton's of the trapping world to me. When you share your experience and insights, I listen. Thank you sir.

Not on the culvert that I posted, but a 110 on a field tile that dumps into that same ditch about 10yds away.

Field tiles are mink magnets.

Seldom, were any other mink from other watersheds or other states compared to those that had that jawbone malignancy? Dioxin was the culprit in Agent Orange and not 2,4-5 T yet 2,4-5 T got the wrap and was for sale in most hardware garden shops in Winsor Ontario (right across from Detroit).as an effective broadleaf herbicide for a long time after it was removed here in the states. It may still be for sale there. Case in point to compare the results of various testing sites when concluding opinions. You showed them there were mink where the techs said there were none so your field experience was pretty valuable to the hypothesis and summation that no mink were there. What happened to the fur on those mink? .................the mike

Yes they were. Mink were sampled from the 2 major tributaries upstream of the Dow Plant, one was the Super Fund river with the cancerous jaw tumors. The other tributary that was sampled were clean and did not have a contaminated chemical site upstream. I sampled mink from the hydroelectric dam down to the Dow Plant which the 2 tributaries flowed into. Then I sampled mink from downstream of the Dow Plant for approximately 25-30 miles. The only mink that had the cancer was from the one tributary and none showed the tumors once the tributary entered the river of concern. In order to determine extent and impact of the dioxin all sampling of animals had to be done upstream & downstream in order to compare contamination.

LOL, my professor had a mink coat made for his wife! LOL

For those who have not done this type of sampling before I could take the mink out of the trap, me and the other occupants in the boat (scientists, techs, students) had to document and photograph the catch & site and record the transects. It proved not to be much fun sitting in a boat in the cold writing in your log book! Rain, snow, it made no difference because everything was waterproof and had to be done for the lab work AND for Court testimony! The mink once removed from the trap was tagged and wrapped in sterilized foil that we had washed with different solvents in the Field Lab before checking traps each day. Once back at the Field Lab I skinned the mink and wrapped the carcass in the foil to be sent down to the MSU Lab. The pelts were rolled & frozen and I never saw them again.

The professor told me that if there was a $$ value to the mink I caught it would be about $2300/ea.

Seldom, that is an awesome read, thank you for sharing!! Sorry you didn't cash in on the $2,300 mink, hope you got paid well enough otherwise!!

Nice

As is trapping, we tend to overcompensate the obvious. Often the real prize is under a cloak of camouflage.

If you cannot use a snare cut the ends out of a gallon milk jug and use a 110/120 BG.

I grew up not far from you Seldom, about 7 miles outside of Pinconning. I trapped all the drainage ditches around my house and caught a fair share of mink while trapping rats.
I come up every year to bow hunt, ironically, in Midland County. Take 10 to 18, head north towards Beaverton. State land off of Baker Road.

Well Hello ksp!
I learned to trap mink in the northern 1/2 of Midland Co and west 1/2 of Bay Co. before going to work for MSU. You mentioned Baker Rd area which I know very well, I trapped beaver , otter, & coyote in that area of Mud Ck & Black Ck as well as deer hunted on the northern side of Curtis Rd. That’s all behind me now because as of 1/15/25 I’m retired after 70 years trapping and most of it in those areas I noted!
Nice to meet you!

You guys ever meet up with Ken Smythe?

`No. I was told by 2 of his friends and a local fur buyer that he wouldn’t trap in our County because there weren’t enough mink. They all told me the same thing that his lines started 50 mile north & Northwest of our County. His thoughts, as told to me by the same people were that trout water equated to higher populations of mink, otter, & beaver.

If you read my previous posts you maybe now can understand why there was so much widespread controversy about my MSU catch numbers on the Dioxin Prj!

I remember Ken well. Bob Noonan had just left being with me for a while and shared with me that he was heading up to be with Ken for a while the next week.

Ken had a very intimate understanding of mink and their behavior. He obviously developed and fine tuned his Bottom Edge system with this vast knowledge. I was saddened to learn of his early passing. He was a joy to talk to and hear of his passion for mink trapping.

What a small world! I've always said I'd like to come back for about 10 days and do some trapping there. I have never hunted the north side of Curtis Rd., stay mostly in the "East Woods" as I have several spots I've found over the years and hunt them as the wind allows me too. Next time I make a trip up I'd love to meet you and pick your brain about mink trapping! So, you are not going to trap anymore?

After 70 years trapping I decided to retire from it. I might put in a few beaver floats this spring on our bigger rivers that are easy to get to but that’s only a 50/50 chance and if I don’t, I’ll officially be done/retired. If and when you come up I’d be glad to have you stop in and bs about mink! Love to talk mink!