• Welcome to BirdForum, the internet's largest birding community with thousands of members from all over the world. The forums are dedicated to wild birds, birding, binoculars and equipment and all that goes with it.

    Please register for an account to take part in the discussions in the forum, post your pictures in the gallery and more.
ZEISS DTI thermal imaging cameras. For more discoveries at night, and during the day.

Otter spraint or Mink scat? (1 Viewer)

Capercaillie71

Well-known member
I am tending towards mink scat, but not sure. It was quite small (about 7cm x 1 cm) and seems twisted at the end. Also contains what appear to be mammal bone fragments and none of the fish scales and bones that I normally see in otter spraint. I did try giving it a sniff, but couldn't really smell anything, but then I've got a bit of a cold at the moment, so that doesn't mean much.

Any help gratefully received.
 

Attachments

  • scat1.jpg
    scat1.jpg
    199.7 KB · Views: 1,212
  • scat2.jpg
    scat2.jpg
    198.5 KB · Views: 452
I should think the composition would rule out Otter straight away, but is there any reason it couldn't be a Pine Marten?

Are Mink common thereabouts?

John
 
It's probably dried out too much and so lost its smell. If you moisten it it'll start smelling again. From the composition and location, I agree that Mink is the most likely. Pine Marten scat can be extremely variable in size/shape which is why some Pine Marten researchers are now using DNA analysis to obtain a positive ID.
 
I,m no expert but we have a Pine Marten visiting our garden on a regular basis and this looks good for Pine Marten.
 
Think you might find this amusing: when our grandchildren were small and holidaying in Scotland we frequently saw pine martin droppings on stones - and they always seemed to consist of rowan berries. The girls got to recognise these. When we got home, in the middle of the town they saw some rowan berries on the pavement - "Ooh look Gran - a pine martin must be round here !!" .............

Sorry I'm no help as far as identification of this poo is concerned.
 
I didn't think of Pine Marten, but I suppose it is a possibility as the photo was taken in Easter Ross, where all three species occur. I was thinking of Mink more on the basis of habitat as it was next to a watercourse with alder and willow woodland adjacent.

I found two more signs further down the same watercourse which were very old and weathered. These were in more of a classic otter location (on top of a rock in the watercourse), but the first one had fur and a bird's foot in it, which seemed more mink-like, while the second had fish scales in it.
 

Attachments

  • spraint1.JPG
    spraint1.JPG
    190.8 KB · Views: 462
  • spraint2.JPG
    spraint2.JPG
    187.8 KB · Views: 512
Warning! This thread is more than 16 years ago old.
It's likely that no further discussion is required, in which case we recommend starting a new thread. If however you feel your response is required you can still do so.

Users who are viewing this thread

Back
Top