j.savilaThis is an American mink, a harmful invasive species in Finland. It preys on the eggs of many water birds, which haven’t naturally evolved defenses against such a predator in the Finnish archipelago. To control its population, mink hunting is actively encouraged. <br> I took this photo in the Turku archipelago a couple of years ago. The mink was playing on the ice, rolling in the snow, climbing on the rocks, and diving into a hole it had made in the ice. Despite being an invasive species, it’s undeniably an adorable animal.<br> <br> <a href="https://pixelfed.social/discover/tags/Photography?src=hash" class="u-url hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#Photography</a> <a href="https://pixelfed.social/discover/tags/WildlifePhotography?src=hash" class="u-url hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#WildlifePhotography</a> <a href="https://pixelfed.social/discover/tags/NaturePhotography?src=hash" class="u-url hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#NaturePhotography</a> <a href="https://pixelfed.social/discover/tags/AmericanMink?src=hash" class="u-url hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#AmericanMink</a> <a href="https://pixelfed.social/discover/tags/Mink?src=hash" class="u-url hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#Mink</a> <a href="https://pixelfed.social/discover/tags/Wildlife?src=hash" class="u-url hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#Wildlife</a> <a href="https://pixelfed.social/discover/tags/Finland?src=hash" class="u-url hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#Finland</a> <a href="https://pixelfed.social/discover/tags/BalticSea?src=hash" class="u-url hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#BalticSea</a> <a href="https://pixelfed.social/discover/tags/ArchipelagoSea?src=hash" class="u-url hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#ArchipelagoSea</a> <a href="https://pixelfed.social/discover/tags/TurkuArchipelago?src=hash" class="u-url hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#TurkuArchipelago</a> <a href="https://pixelfed.social/discover/tags/Suomi?src=hash" class="u-url hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#Suomi</a> <a href="https://pixelfed.social/discover/tags/Itämeri?src=hash" class="u-url hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#Itämeri</a> <a href="https://pixelfed.social/discover/tags/Saaristomeri?src=hash" class="u-url hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#Saaristomeri</a> <a href="https://pixelfed.social/discover/tags/TurunSaaristo?src=hash" class="u-url hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#TurunSaaristo</a> <a href="https://pixelfed.social/discover/tags/Luontokuvaus?src=hash" class="u-url hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#Luontokuvaus</a> <a href="https://pixelfed.social/discover/tags/Valokuvaus?src=hash" class="u-url hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#Valokuvaus</a>