26. October 2007 by Ranger.

Introduction

The mink is one of the most widespread carnivores of North America. They thrive throughout the continent except for the far north of Canada and the arid southwestern United States. Mink are valuable furbearers that are also aggressive, effective predators of muskrats and waterfowl, which can be an economic loss to trappers and hunters. Males are 1.4–1.8 times heavier than females. Weights of adult males may vary from 1.5–4.5 pounds, but this variation is between populations throughout its distribution in the United States rather than within a given population. Mating can occur with several males from January through March. Gestation varies from 39-76 days due to delayed implantation. Implantation in the uterus of the female is probably triggered by the lengthening daylight usually in March. Once development of the embryo begins, two to six kits, sometimes as many as 10, are born in 27-33 days in April or May. Young mink can fend for themselves in two months, and at five months of age they are as large as adults. Sexual maturity is reached in 10 months, and though some females might stay with their mother longer, most leave the den to establish their own territory in autumn.

September 11
The pair of young female mink was three miles upstream from the safety of their mother’s den and care. There had been seven kits in the family, four brothers and three sisters. Three of their brothers struck out on their own several days ago. She, and one of her sisters, left the den to find their own territory shortly after her brothers departed. The males went downstream, but she and her sister went upstream.
The two females had moved rapidly upstream during the first day. They lingered only long enough to catch some crayfish, and covered three miles before curling up together in the natural obstruction of a large logjam for some much needed rest. This is the farthest they had ever been from the abandoned muskrat burrow where they were born last May.
September 12
After several hours of sleep in the cozy confines of the log jam, both females stirred. The gurgling sound of the stream weaving its way through the logjam had been comforting to their peaceful rest, but their nocturnal instincts now awakened, and they were hungry. They often followed their mother on her night hunts for crayfish, frogs, rabbits and muskrats. Mother had been a good provider and teacher of the skills they needed to survive on their own. The entire family of young mink witnessed their mother’s swiftness and aggressive attacks on prey larger than herself.
After some stretching and yawning in the makeshift den, they emerged in the cool darkness on the top of the logjam. Each predator sniffed the air for any sign of prey or threats. Detecting none, they loped across the logs and bounded down to the streambed shore. The pair of females separated and began the search for crayfish along the shoreline as they continued their slow travel upstream.
Both females heard the rustling of the leaves on the river bank above them, but the female downstream also caught the scent from the slight swirl of air currents moving in her direction. She quickly recognized it as prey and darted a little further downstream where she climbed the stream bank and perhaps might catch the prey coming in her direction. Her hunting partner hadn’t caught the scent, but observed her sister climbing the river bank cautiously. Moving quickly upstream, she also climbed the river bank. Now, whatever made the sound in the leaves was between the two predatory mink. The young mink that was downstream couldn’t see the potential meal yet, but she knew from the scent that the leaves were being rustled by a rabbit.
The rabbit was feeding on small crabapples that had fallen to the ground. Several wild crabapple trees along the river bank often attracted deer, rabbits, and muskrats throughout the fall. The seeds of the crabapples were consumed by Pine Grosbeaks which regularly visited the small stand of crabapple trees. Both female mink silently closed in on the rabbit from two sides. The rabbit saw the mink on the downstream side of her and bolted upstream with the mink in pursuit. She ran directly into the second mink who quickly grabbed the fleeing mammal by the throat. The momentum of the heavier, swiftly moving rabbit lifted the smaller female mink off her feet and dragged her along for some distance. But the mink’s four sharp canine teeth punctured the rabbit’s jugular; she let out a high pitched squeal, fell on her side, and kicked frantically to no avail. Though the rabbit was larger than both of the young female mink, she was dead within seconds after the second mink arrived to help her sister.
The two females fed voraciously on the three pound cottontail that weighed more than the combined weight of the two young mink. They squabbled and snarled at each other as they fed, but it was the competition of den mates. This would to be their last meal together.
After an hour or so of feeding, one mink continued on her way upstream. Her sister stayed with what was left of the rabbit, and eventually made the log jam they had slept in as one of her dens. She established this area as her territory and would range from one-third of a mile to almost two miles up and down the stream from the log jam. While she often used other den sites in her travels, the log jam was the center of her claimed territory which she patrolled and protected.
The departing female traveled upstream in the darkness without stopping to hunt as her belly was full of rabbit meat. She only hesitated briefly to urinate and leave some scat on the rocks of the stream, though she would have killed any prey she stumbled into, because mink are surplus killers. Even if she wasn’t hungry, if prey was present, she would have killed it. But, she didn’t encounter any prey. She did detect several interesting places where another mink had urinated regularly.
High on an old snag next to the river sat one of the denizens of the forest. She had patrolled thousands of acres of the mixed hardwoods of beech, maple, birch, and oak and abundant evergreen trees lining the stream and hillsides for the past ten years. Her only natural enemies were others of her kind and in rare instances, Goshawks. This stalwart forest resident never built a nest; but used the nests of hawks, herons, crows, squirrels, and hollow trees.
Daylight was breaking as the young mink was crossing a fallen tree to the other side of the river when she instinctively detected danger. She stopped on the log to look around and sniff the air when she saw a large bird rapidly descending towards her. The young mink dove off the log into the water below just as the outstretched talons of a Great Horned Owl barely missed capturing her. The owl had descended from its high perch in the partially denuded fall forest. The predatory bird had a wingspan of forty seven inches, but kept her wings folded when she dove off the perch to capture the mink. The descent was silent at the speed of gravity. The owl extended its wings and its talons only when it was very near the mink. Had the mink not noticed the owl, she would have been killed instantly when grasped within the powerful large talons.
Safely under water, the mink swam downstream with the current using all four paws to rapidly put distance between her and the danger overhead. The owl glided silently through the open forest on the other side of the stream, and fortunately spotted and killed a red squirrel that was hunting acorns in the deep leaves of the forest floor. She then carried her prey to a high perch where she ripped it apart to feed.
The mink surfaced under some overhanging brush of the stream to scan the sky overhead for the danger that nearly ended her life. She waited there for almost an hour before cautiously swimming upstream. The young female remained in the stream for the next mile so she could submerge to escape danger before moving back to the edge of the stream where her travel would be faster. A little further on the four month old mink found a large abandoned muskrat colony. The stream was wider and deeper here. There were numerous burrows in the bank with entrances that were under water. The remaining odor of muskrats was weak as she entered one of the burrows below the river bank. The underground tunnel led to a large cavity under the river bank which had several exits to dry land above the river and one exit to the stream. It reminded her of where she was born, and she curled up in the dry den and slept.
September 13
She awoke during the night and decided to scout out her new surroundings, and search for food. Emerging from one of the exit holes to the dry stream bank, she immediately caught the active scent of field mice. The grassy bank of the stream was also home to hundreds of voles that were feeding on the forbs, grasses, leaves, and seeds of the extensive plant life. She caught and ate several of the mice then descended the stream bank to the edge of the stream where she discovered numerous minnows congregating in the shallow water along the edge of the stream. She chased and caught several of the minnows which were quickly consumed. The abundance of food, numerous dry dens, and the safety of the wide and deep water convinced her this would be her new home. She spent the rest of the night patrolling both sides of the stream picking up a few crayfish and minnows in her travels.
March 21
Mink can breed in their first year. She was ten months old and coming into breeding season. The young mink was a little larger than many other females at 18 inches and just over two pounds due to the abundant food source. Females attain adult size faster than males, but they are smaller. Males continue to grow in their second year.
A male mink was headed downstream in search of females. He was more than two miles beyond the normal range of his territory of 3.5 miles, when he caught the scent of the female at the abandoned muskrat dens. The male was 23 inches long, approaching the range of their maximum size of 28 inches, and he weighed just over three pounds.
He and the female met on the shoreline. They cautiously approached each other. The female was in the last week of her three week breeding season and receptive to copulation. No other males had previously approached her. Females are often bred by several males, though development of the embryo can be delayed in the uterus. Fertilization to implantation, when mating occurs with several males, can last 7 to 30 days. This delay accounts for much of the variation in the duration of pregnancy. However, the delay does not occur when mated later in the season as in her case.
Mating with the male was very aggressive and lasted several hours. After which, the male continued further downstream in search of other females. The female hunted a little more then retired to her den. In her case, implantation of her fertilized eggs would occur over the next several days and she would give birth in the next 27-33 days.
April 24
Late in the afternoon the female returned to her den where she gave birth to six kits. Three males and three females were born. The tiny kits were less than half an ounce at birth and were covered with a short, silvery-white hair. It would be several weeks before their coat would be replaced with a fluffy, reddish-brown coat. The kits were born deaf and blind, and would not gain the ability to see or hear for 21-25 days.
The new mother changed her behavior regarding how much time she would spend out of her den. She now left the den only every two to three hours and hunted for no more than 40 minutes before returning to her kits. This behavior continued for the next seven weeks when her kits would then attain the ability to keep themselves warm. Though the kits were able to eat mice and crayfish in five weeks, they would not be weaned until the eighth or tenth week of their birth.
June 13
The protective mother brought her six kits out of the den for their first hunting lesson for mice in the grass above the den. Several of the faster growing females clumsily chased a few mice but lost them, though one mouse was injured enough that one of the males caught him. Mother captured six mice which she shared with her kits.
They regularly left the dens in subsequent days for hunting trips as a family, and were gradually introduced to hunting for crayfish, mice, young birds, rabbits and minnows. The kits hunting skills improved very rapidly. Over the summer the kits would explore at further distances from the safety of their den, both up and down the stream in small groups, and occasionally alone. Some of the juvenile males ventured as far as several miles from the den, but the juvenile females rarely went farther than a half a mile from their birth place. A variety of temporary dens were used by all the mink throughout the summer.
September 19
Two of the males departed their mother’s den for the last time. They struck out on their own. When they didn’t return, the mother didn’t know whether they had been injured, killed, or left to establish their own territory. But, she didn’t look for them. Over the next week, all but one female left the den to establish their own territory.
December 21
The last kit, a female, might have stayed with her mother until the next spring, which occasionally is the behavior of the remaining female mink of a litter. However, a high school age trapper had placed a coil spring trap set on a log that crossed the stream about a mile or so from her permanent den during the winter trapping season. She didn’t return. The remaining female inherited her birthplace as her permanent den.

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12. October 2007 by Ranger.

There has been considerable debate among the TV talking heads and other pundits around the country as to whether there is a real war with terrorists, or is this a made up war for political reasons. Given the terrorist attacks against Spain, Australia, Great Britain, the Netherlands, and Germany as well as against the United States, from 1979 to the present as detailed in my September 7 article on Illegal Immigrants; there should be no question that this war is real and a serious matter. In fact, the world’s religions have been defending themselves from Islam for thousands of years. The word “Islam” means submission, specifically, submission to the will of Allah. A Muslim is someone who has submitted to the will of Allah as specifically outlined in the Qur’an.

Mohammed divided the world into two houses: The House of Islam (dar al-Islam) and the House of War (dar al-harb). A Muslim sees the world in two halves. One half is Muslim and the other half is in the process of becoming a Muslim. Most Americans think of world peace in terms of peaceful coexistence with those of differing beliefs. A Muslim thinks there will only be world peace when the whole world has submitted to the will of Allah, or, in when everyone become Muslim.

All the terror attacks in the foreign countries and against America and their interests have been by those that believe in the teachings of the Qur’an (The Islamic Bible) and the Hadith, which are the words and deeds of Mohammed. The Hadith are a vital part of the Islamic tradition and next to the Qur’an in authority. If you think Islam is just another religion and the radical fringe element are the only ones we have to watch and worry about then you need to read this book What Every American Needs to Know About the Qur’an, subtitled A History of Islam and the United States by William J. Federer, ISBN 0-9778085-5-6, published by Amerisearch, Inc, May 2007. In this article I will quote extensively from Mr. Federer’s book, which he has willingly granted to all who read his historical work. You can order this inexpensive book from the Ranger Cache store on the upper right of your screen.

Most Americans have not read the Qur’an. Here are a few quotes: Infidels (meaning non-believers in Mohammed and the Islamic religion) are those who declare “God is the Christ, the son of Mary.” (Sura 5:17) The Infidels are your sworn enemies. (Sura 4:101)
Make war on the infidels who dwell around you. (Sura 9:123) Mohammed is Allah’s apostle. Those who follow him are ruthless to the infidels. (Sura 48:29) Believers take neither the Jews nor the Christians for your friends. (Sura 5:51) Never be a helper to the disbelievers. (Sura 28:86) Kill the disbelievers wherever we find them. (Sura 2:191) Fight those who believe not in Allah nor the Last Day, nor hold that forbidden by Allah and His Messenger, nor acknowledge the religion of Truth (even if they are) of the People of the Book, until they pay the jizya (tax) with willing submission, and feel themselves subdued. (Sura 9:29) Sura is a chapter of the Qur’an.

Moderate Muslims believe Islam will conquer the world in the distant future therefore it is acceptable to get along with non-Muslims in the present. A violent Muslim thinks Islam will conquer the world now and wants to make it happen. Violent Muslims would just as soon kill moderate Muslims as they consider them backsliders from obeying the commands of Mohammed. This is one of the reasons for the suicide bombers killing their own people in Iraq and others around the world. Most moderate Muslims are hesitant to speak out against violent Muslims because they are threatened by the violent Muslims, or they may have a fatwa (religious edict usually calling for their death) placed on them.

Surprisingly, Americans have elected a Muslim to Congress. He is Keith Ellison, (D-MN) the first Muslim elected to the U.S. Congress, representing Minnesota’s 5th. District. Congressman Ellison didn’t say much about his being a Muslim during his campaign, but announced to his Islamic supporters “We are going to continue to face them. They’re not going to stop right away. But, if you, and me too, stick together, if we believe in Allah, subhanahu wa ta’ala, if we turn to the Qur’an for guidance, we’ll find an answer to the questions we have.” I have no idea what the “questions” might be, but this first Muslim Congressman took his oath of office with his hand on a Qur’an borrowed from the Library of Congress that previously belonged to former President Thomas Jefferson. President Jefferson owned the Qur’an to try to understand his enemy in the early 1800’s who were a horde of Muslim Barbary Pirates of Tripoli that were committing terrorist acts by raiding American ships and enslaving sailors. In 1803, President Jefferson sent the Marines to capture Tripoli and force the Muslim Pasha to stop his terrorist attacks. This gave rise to the Marine Corp Anthem: “From the Halls of Montezuma to the shores of Tripoli…”

Islamic law does not give non-Muslims equal legal standing with Muslims. Instead, it prohibits a non-Muslim from testifying in court against a Muslim. The U.S. Constitution’s 15th. Amendment guarantees the right of citizens to vote, while Islamic law does not allow voting as democracy is considered people setting themselves in the place of Allah by making laws. Mohammed said, “No Muslim should be killed for killing a Kafir (infidel)” (Hadith Sahih al-Bukhari, Vol. 9, No. 50) These are just a few samples of the teachings in the Qur’an. Federer’s book goes into depth on the history of the Islamic religion and America’s historical interaction by past American Presidents. You really should be aware of that history which will better prepare you for the future.

I find it most disturbing that our elected leaders are not concerned enough about the teachings of the Qur’an and the threat that those thousands of other than Mexicans (OTM’s) might be to American citizens. Given the violent wars of past history and the contemporary attacks of recent history, America will experience further terror incidents in the future. It could be tomorrow or next week, but most likely after the next election cycle to test the mettle of the new President.

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8. October 2007 by Ranger.

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In my previous article on Illegal Immigration, which you can find by scrolling down through my collection of blogs or clicking on Illegal Immigration (posted 7 September 2007) in the yellow box on the right of your screen, I wrote about the immediate threat of other than Mexican (OTM) illegal immigrants. That situation is the highest priority for the continued safety of Americans in the short term, but the long term effects of an uncontrolled population will definitely change the lifestyle to which you have become accustomed, and eventually will destroy the United States. This commentary is about the obvious impacts and threat to the continued existence of America by the shear number of uncontrolled immigrants who are only looking for a better life for themselves and their families and not necessarily entering the country for the purpose of conducting terrorist or criminal activities.

The beginning of the problem is centered with President Kennedy’s legislative recommendation to Congress in 1963 with his suggestion that the national quota system on immigration be eliminated. Committee hearings on the Bill began in January 1964 with no further action and the bill expired with the adjournment of the Eighty-eighth Congress. However, President Johnson gave new life to President Kennedy’s recommendation and Hearings began again in February 1965. The Hart-Celler Immigration Act of 1965 that eventually passed favored Latin America and Asian immigration and included a feature that opened a flood gate which ruefully labeled the bill as the “Brother and Sister Act.”

This was the problem then and still is a problem. An Asian or Latin American student comes to America to study in the late 1960’s to the present day. Upon graduation they apply to the Labor Department for permission to work in the United States. Thus, they become an official legal immigrant who wishes to reunite his or her family. Under the 1965 law, the new immigrant requests that his/her parents, spouse and children join them in America. Those family members become citizens and then petition for their brothers, sisters, and parents to join them. All the new arrivals then petition for their relatives to join them. It was and is a disastrous, but legal chain reaction.

In 1970, America’s population was approximately 203 million and by 1973, there were fewer than 2.1 children being born per productive female in the country. That was very close to zero population growth for our nation. At that rate of replacement and loss due to deaths and those leaving the country, it was projected that the U.S. population would reach 247 million by 2030. However, given the flaw in the 1965 Immigration Act and the uncontrolled borders of the United States, we are now well over 300 million residents at the moment (10/8/07). The government has no clue as to how many illegal immigrants have entered the United States. It could be any number from 12-30 million or more that are not counted in the census. The true number will become substantially more critical for the country’s resources of food, disease outbreaks, water, energy, health care costs and services, poverty support efforts, driving down the collective IQ of the natioin, lawlessness, social conflicts, unemployment, school construction, voter fraud, transportation, illegal drug use, the loss of common language and culture (Congress recently voted down English as a mandatory requirement) depletion of natural resources, higher taxes and practically everything else you can think of from here on unless the 1965 Act and illegal immigration are dramatically controlled.

I recommend that you listen to the following video presentation on YouTube:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n7WJeqxuOfQ You might have to copy and paste this address. If it doesn’t work, put the following in your search engine: Gumball Immigration.

Factor in global warming impacts and subsequent migration that will occur for survival, terrorism threats and the fact that China’s population of more than 1.4 billion, of which they now have more people with an Intelligence Quotient of 140 or more than the United States has population….the conclusion is America’s only chance for survival is if the government gets complete control of immigration and pursues aggressive programs which will dramatically increase the country’s science and engineering graduates.

Posted in lEGAL AND iLLEGAL iMMIGRATION | 1 Comment »

2. October 2007 by Ranger.

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Like many large national parks, Yellowstone National Park has management problems that polarize the public and/or threatens to modify the vegetation or the existence of some species. Among those are the reintroduction of wolves in 1995, a bison herd that is too large which regularly leaves the park boundaries and is infected with brucellosis, the existence of Lake Trout in Yellowstone Lake that are voraciously consuming the native Cutthroat Trout, and Whirling Disease (WD).

Myxobolus cerebralis, even the scientific name for Whirling Disease sounds bad, and it is if you are a trout, a salmon or a fisherman. It was originally misnamed cerebralis (referring to the brain); because it was believed that the parasite infected only the brain of fish. We now know that the parasite feeds on fish cartilage. I noticed a major decline of the available trout in the Yellowstone River about five years ago. Yellowstone River is a world class fly fishing river where sixteen inch and up native cutthroats were common. That is, until M. cerebralis wrecked havoc on the native population. Whirling disease was originally identified in the park within native cutthroat trout near the mouth of Clear Creek on the east side of Lake Yellowstone.

The parasitic organism M. cerebralis is native to the Eurasian continent. The first confirmed outbreak of the disease in the literature was described in Germany in 1903. By 1952, it had spread to France and Denmark, and was later confirmed in South Africa, New Zealand, and in at least 23 states of the United States. The first report of the disease in the U.S. was from Pennsylvania during 1956.

The parasite is a microscopic, primitive animal organism that requires two hosts to survive. Tubifex tubifex, or Sludge Worm, is a worm that exists in the sediment of the benthic zone (lake or river bottoms where the water is generally cooler). Spores of M. cerebralis infect the worm which becomes the first host for Whirling disease. Within the worm’s gut the spores develop and multiply to produce the next spore form known as triactinomyxon. These are then released to float freely in the water until they come in contact with a trout or salmon. Once contact is made, triactinomyxon attaches to the fish’s skin and injects the parasite into the body of the fish. Here it travels along the nervous system until it finds cartilage where it feeds and changes once again back to a myxospore. Once the fish dies and decays, the spores are released and free to begin the life cycle over again. Humans are not susceptible to the disease.

Infected fish with Whirling disease may have a black tail because the parasite places pressure on the nerves that control pigmentation. The attack on the cartilage causes deformities in the skeleton of the fish, which cause the fish to whirl uncontrollably. That reaction prevents the fish from feeding normally and the lack of its ability to escape because of the whirling behavior makes it particularly easy to catch by predators.

Whirling Disease was unknowingly spread by fish hatcheries who were stocking fish throughout the various states without realizing that the parasite existed in their hatchery. It was also spread through the natural flow of water, through the digestive system of birds and other fish feeding on infected fish which then spread the spores through their feces. Other methods of spreading the disease may have happened when the spores were carried on the bottoms of boats, wading boots or the release of fish from one waterway to another by fishermen. The spores of M.cerebralis are somewhat indestructible and can endure either freezing or drying. It is believed they can survive in many streams for up to 30 years

Early studies indicate the success of the parasite is closely associated with cooler water temperatures. The parasite tends to be less successful in warmer waters. Rocky Mountain streams are typically cooler waters during most summers which may have initially allowed the parasite to spread rapidly with a high rate of success. However, much of the West and Yellowstone has experienced warmer summers than usual during the past several years. Many rivers in Yellowstone and Montana were temporarily closed to fishing the past two summers because water temperatures rose to as high as 77 degrees F., which is stressful to the trout population as their optimum water temperature is 68 degrees F. or less. Perhaps that was a blessing to slow down the advancement of Whirling Disease.

There is no practical method to eradicate the parasite from a stream, river or lake. As destructive as this parasite is; it is not likely that it will eliminate all trout from an infected stream or river. We can be sure of this because there are still trout in Eurasia and the parasite has been there for at least 100 years or more. Initial infection definitely reduces the population because it easily infects younger fish. It is possible that some trout could be genetically less susceptible to the disease and that resistance could be passed on to future generations. Let us hope so,

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