Mustelidae Spotlight: Mink

When I think of a mink, the term sounds distinctively feminine. In the dictionary--when not referring to the species of musty--the word is often used to describe a woman with very extravagant tastes. I was wondering why it was like this, so I read some information about the creature, but still found very little about them that screamed female; however, the feminine term is still very much in common use. Sometimes research is rough on me, but I did find some things that may explain it.

The mink is a mostly aquatic musty with brown fur. You almost always find them around water. In fact, they almost never roam away from the water for any reason. They tend to follow river ways looking for fish and other sea life to eat. As loyal to water as these animals are, you might be surprised to hear what their favorite food is--rabbits. Yeah, I didn't understand that either. It seems to me there might have been a bit of confusion on the part of the mink.

Anyways, I did find something really interesting about their behavior. The male mink absolutely hates sharing a space with another male. No really, if they see another male walk into his territory, IT'S ON! They'll be blood and teeth all over the place! However, if the same male's territory is invaded by a female mink, well... he might just let it pass. And wait! It's not because he wants a girlfriend, he just chooses to tolerate her. This got me thinking though: There really must be something about the female.

 Maybe, it really is art imitating life. I know for a fact that all minks have an ill temperament, but for some reason, the girls get a pass. It's like no matter how annoying she is, the guy just can't say no... but... I get the feeling that he really wants to. Isn't that interesting? Maybe, if they ended up getting hitched, he'd be forced to spend all his money on her extravagant tastes, but then I may not be talking about the musty anymore.

I am happy to say that there is a mink in fiction, and might I remark, a very lovely one. Her name is Minerva Mink from the hit 90's TV show "Animaniacs." Despite the fact that this was a children's show, this anthropomorphic, white mink was clearly a sex symbol. She was drawn as a shapely female, she was vain, and she had very extravagant tastes--even in men. What was rather amusing was how all the other animals of the forest would ogle her leading to some very annoyed wives. This sort of imagery was actually a common occurrence in "Animaniacs," and I always found it very amusing. Despite only having two episodes to her name, I still hear people fondly talk about Minerva Mink to this very day.

If I wanted to base my own stuff after the real animal, I would actually make them bad-tempered fishermen, but the temptation to explore their females in fiction is much too great. Clearly, there is something subtle but still very strong about their females. They seem to have a magic to them despite being fairly unsociable. But think very carefully before you tie that knot. You may end up entirely under her power.

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