Image of American mink

Description:

"Birded High Point & Stokes State Forest Thurs 6/2 with Sandy & Bob. Had some nice birds, including the Blackburnian Warbler I was gunning for: Sandy heard one from the moving car, stopped, & pished it all the way down from the top of a tall conifer for great looks. (""Pishing"" is a sound that attracts small birds -- sounds like their mobbing call. There's a real art to it.) But the sighting of the day was undoubtedly this mink. We were standing next to a small stream a little ways off the road when I spotted something moving & said ""What's that??"" My first thought was ""river otter?!?"" Simultaneously another birder on the road (whom we never did get to meet & thank) called out, ""There's a mink headed towards you!"" The mink made her way up the rocky streambed carrying a dead chipmunk by the neck, passing <20' from us & depositing the chipmunk in a streambank den under some tree roots right across from us, then continuing upstream. We stood rooted to the spot & marveled; she was clearly aware of us, but didn't seem overly concerned. Here's a shot of her traveling. Are those babies at the mouth of the den?? They haven't moved in between the 2 shots I got there. I'm skeptical because we didn't notice them at the time, & our looks thru bins were much sharper than these photos -- but she was so close at this point & we were trying not to move; maybe nobody was actually looking thru the bins at the den? I know I wasn't, because I was busy snapping pictures. What about you, Sandy? Bob?"