Roscommon Galway Deputy Michael Fitzmaurice is calling for a nationwide cull of wild mink in tandem with the cull of mink on specialised farms in Ireland.
The Chief Medical Officer contacted the Minister for Agriculture in recent days to recommend the cull on mink farms amid concerns around a mutated coronavirus strain discovered on Danish mink farms.
The Independent TD says with the cull due to take place now on the mink farms the opportunity should be taken to eradicate the wild species, most of which have bred from minks which escaped from farms over the years.
Deputy Fitzmaurice says minks are a well know threat to wildfowl and other species of animals and fish and he says the national Parks and Wildlife Service already have a report recommending measures to cut down the populations.
