Ice fisherman feeds mink

[LostAnotherOne]

https://northernontario.ctvnews.ca/mobile/curious-mink-approaches-man-ice-fishing-on-frozen-northern-ontario-lake-1.4808658

This is something I’ve always wanted to experience.  Sitting down ice fishing and having wildlife come to you for scraps.  I’m sure some of you guys have got some stories.

[Fisherman]

We used to have them pop up in the permy hut on Simcoe and steal a perch or two.

[OhioFisherman]

I took my first wife on a family trip to Pointe Au Baril, we got a chipmunk in our cabin, a trail of grapes out the door got it out. She wasn't nearly as thrilled with the bat flying inside the cabin, an open door and a net got it out. It seems odd to leave a warmer area that is basically poisonous snake free and encounter  them there.

Some years ago when I was still able to wander about my yard I had 2 minks wandering it with me, they were the first I had ever seen in the wild here, I thought someones ferrets had escaped until I did some research.

[DanD]

When Long Point Bay (St. Williams) use to freeze over and we could leave a hut out there, for the season. We use to clean our perch, out there on the ice; leaving the remains behind the hut. Next time out, there was never a scrap left. The one time I guess the Mink (or Ferret?) wasn't willing to wait for us to leave. He/she came in the hut through one of the holes, in the floor. Jumped up on the bench beside the wood stove and just sat there?  Wouldn't let us touch him; but wasn't afraid of us either. Fed it a bunch of the minnows and when he/she decided it was time; it jumped down to the floor and out the hole it went. All of us just sat there thinking what the hell; I guess warmth and food concurs all? 

Dan.

[crappieperchhunter]

Perch fishing the Talbot river. It used to be a regular occurrence for a mink to come up to you and check out what you where throwing in the white bucket. We feed the critters and birds at the cottage but this winter we had a first. Looked out to see if I needed to top up our treats on the porch and right outside the window was a fox eating peanuts, shell and all. We fish a marina on Simcoe in the spring and fall for perch and crappies. Lotsa friendly geese and ducks around so I'm sure the boaters feed them throughout there summer season. One time in the fall, some ducks swam over to my boat while we where taking a break and eating our lunch. One duck beside the boat jumped up out of the water and sat on the middle bench and just stared at us until my buddy gave him a chunk of bread from his sandwich. He ate it and asked for more, so he got some of my sandwich too before he jumped back in the water with his jealous friends. However my favourite is feeding a Blue Heron and a Osprey while I'm bluegill shore fishing at the cottage.  The osprey will sit in a tree behind me and if I get a small gill I step on it to kill it and then throw it way up in the air. By the end of the summer it will have the routine down and will be flying before I throw the fish so it grabs it in the air before it lands in the water. Same with the Heron.Kill a small gill or perch and throw it to him on shore. I think the same Heron comes to me every summer because he is very territorial and loudly and aggressively chases away any of the other 2-4 Herons that are watching us. As the summer wears on the Heron gets tamer as well. Some years by the fall as soon as I show up at my shore spot he will just fly over and stand right beside me waiting for his free breakfast.

[pics]

When I go to my Aunts place in Nova Scotia there's a bald eagle that follows us on the lake until we feed it fish.. not unlike the ones on Nipigon that will come when they see you cleaning fish on shore. At moose camp we have skunk, mink and whiskey jacks that show up for meals of Grouse guts..