Lightning with Teeth

A juvenile American mink races through the grass to catch up to its siblings at Fernald. Minks are hyperactive animals with fast metabolisms. Everything they do, they do quickly. These little weasels are among the last remaining predators found in southwest Ohio.

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A mink hunts frogs along a pond at Fernald. They eat almost anything they can catch. No small animals are safe from minks.

A mink investigates my squeaking sounds at Sharon Gorge. Ever inquisitive, minks never miss an opportunity. This one was hunting along the creek. Minks are in the family Mustelidae, which includes otters, badgers, wolverines, martens, fishers, ferrets and weasels. All of them are known for big appetites.

A knothole eight feet above the ground was a surprising place to find a mink. This one at Farbach Werner might have raided a squirrel's nest.

A mink explores a pond's edge at Fernald. Minks are found at many of the parks in southwest Ohio.

A juvenile mink contact calls its family after getting separated in the tall grass. The babies grow up to be little murderers. But they are pretty cute.

Every mink encounter is a short one. This one dashed across the trail in front of me. Like Forrest Gump, if they are going somewhere, they are running. 

A mink makes a brief appearance on the overgrown trail at Gilmore Ponds. You don't get second chances to photograph them! 

A mink investigates a pond at Fernald in late summer.

I have had some luck getting weasels to come within photo range by squeaking at them. Their curiosity always gets the better of them. It worked with this mink. It also worked in the Tetons with a pair of curious pine martens.

A mink has no business climbing trees and yet this one had no trouble. The tree hollow might have had another entrance near the base. I waited for the mink to venture out onto the branch, but it vanished like most minks do.