“Britain’s water voles used to be everywhere but numbers have plummeted by 97% since the 1970s – mink are eliminating them left, right and centre," said Bill Amos.

The University of Cambridge professor of evolutionary genetics is involved in a project that aims to eradicate mink from the UK’s waterways.

Waterlife Recovery Trust has laid hundreds of traps across the East of England since 2020. Earlier this year, it announced it had cleared East Anglia of the invasive species.