1.5 Euro European mink

It is one of the most endangered mammals on the planet. There are currently only three populations: in central Russia, in Romania (Danube delta) and the one restricted to south-western France and northern Spain. These three populations are in clear decline.
This small carnivore has semi-aquatic habits. It inhabits riverbanks and banks, in areas with little human presence and abundant vegetation cover, through which it moves very quickly and discreetly due to its small size and elongated silhouette. They cope equally well both on land and in the water, the latter being a medium for which they are perfectly adapted, with interdigital membranes on all four limbs that allow them to swim quickly and easily.
Males are somewhat larger and heavier than females, at about 55 cm in length and weighing just under 1 kg. The main difference with the American mink (Neovison vison) is a uniform dark brown coat, with two white patches around the muzzle, on the upper lip and on the lower lip. Its diet is strictly carnivorous but very varied, ranging from fish and small mammals to reptiles, birds and amphibians.
The main reason why this small carnivore is critically endangered according to the Red List of Threatened Species is the presence of the American mink (an invasive species introduced by man years ago when fur farms began to proliferate), which has been cornering the European mink, also transmitting the Aleutian mink disease, to which the European species is less resistant than the American. This fact, together with the degradation and contamination of the waters of the rivers that form their natural habitat, or road accidents, has meant that the population of European mink in the rivers in the north of our country has been reduced to a few hundred specimens.