§ 68. Sir Tufton Beamishasked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food how long the mink trapping service has been in operation; at what cost and with what success; and why he has decided to withdraw this service in view of the still serious problem of predatory mink gone feral.
§ Mr. John MackieNine trappers were appointed in March, 1965, for control of340W wild mink. The object was to study the habits of these creatures and test the possibility of eradicating them. The operation so far has cost about £60,000 and it seems to have been successful in keeping the wild mink population under control.
The experience now gained suggests that there is little prospect of eradicating this pest and that its numbers can best be controlled by riparian occupiers supported by Ministry advice.