Boatowners in Brighton are being warned to be vigilant after a mink with a taste for powerboats ate its way through the bulkhead of a £100,000 motorboat moored at Brighton Marina.

Elliott Maurice, a 36-yr old businessman said: “I went on my boat and found quite a strange smell and thought it was a bit odd. When I opened the cabin I saw droppings about the size of rat droppings. Then I saw a hole in the bulkhead about the size of a fist and I knew there was no way a rat could have done that.

“I went up to the harbour office and was told there is a mink on the loose – and then I saw the little sod.”

He said he didn’t know how much damage the mink, dubbed Minnie, had caused to other boats, but said it could run into tens of thousands of pounds. “I’m not over keen on it, to be honest. It is quite cute looking but not something you want to make friends with. I think they can be quite vicious.”

Marina bosses said the mink has been on the loose for 10 days and are getting in a specialist team to hunt the creature before it does any more damage. Another boat owner, who did not want to be named, said he had discovered a hole in the deck of his boat on Monday and was furious that the mink was still on the run.

It is believed the mink is the offspring of one of hundreds set free by animal liberation activists in the late 1960s. No sailing boats have been targeted by the creature.

Image: Kent News & Pictures Ltd.