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Originally Posted by woosh  Would there be any circumstances where they would tolerate each other like this? |
Hi Ian, welcome from me too, and great observation and photos.
Whilst the text book view is that otters and mink don't get on, that's a bit of an over generalization. Athough I've never witnessed anything like this, I have observed otter and mink co-existing for a number of weeks on a fairly short stretch (~2 miles) of river, so it's not true to assume that where otter do drive out mink (don't have any personal experience as to whether they do or don't), that they do so aggressively or immediately.
What should be borne in mind is that otter and mink, like most other mustelids, have a natural inclination for play ... and a greater inclination to sleep.
In fact, more than 90% of a mustelid's time will be taken up by sleep, interspersed by only short bouts of activity in hunting and/or play.
The easier it is to source food, the more time there is of course to sleep and play.
These mustelids are crespusular (that is active mainly around the twilight hours) rather than being strictly nocturnal (active at night) and so that is their main hunting/feeding period. Daytime activity is more often reserved then for sleep or play (or other boring housekeeping stuff and personal grooming).
As for territorialism, well perhaps I can expand upon the general understanding of that too. Both otters and mink are somewhat territorial only when it comes to other members of their own species and
same sex.
By that I mean that the territories of males and females of either species will overlap, the males defending their patch and the females doing likewise for theirs. Outside of the breeding season however, the males and females of each species will just tend to avoid each other.
Where there is no great competition for food, and especially when no youngsters are being reared, there is of course no need for animosity between either species (or sexes).
In most instances where more than one mink, or more than one otter are observed together, it will more than likely be a female with her kits, or perhaps two sibling females who may stay together over winter.
At this time of year, males and females will however be starting to come together to mate, so you may have snapped a pre-breeding pairing, but its probably more likely that they are both females.
In conclusion then, I think you may have been very privileged indeed to have witnessed an opportunity for fun that both species just found too irresistible to leave, despite the presence of their 'cousins'.
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