LDAP System Administration

Colophon

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The animal on the cover of LDAP System Administration is a mink (Mustela vison). Mink are found throughout the United States and Canada except in Arizona, the Arctic, and some offshore islands. A mink’s fur is mostly brown with some white spots around the throat, chin, and chest. Its coat is thick, soft, and waterproof (thanks to guard hairs covered with an oily protective substance). Its body is streamlined and skinny with short legs and an elongated face. As part of its water-loving nature, a mink’s toes are partially webbed. Body length varies but is usually around two feet. The tail comprises almost half of a mink’s total length.

Females become fertile during the winter and give birth in April or May. A typical litter ranges between one and eight offspring. M. vison is a solitary species; males are particularly intolerant of each other. They mark their territories with a pungent, musky secretion from their oversized anal glands. They are especially active at night and are skilled swimmers and climbers. Mink dig burrows in banks of lakes and rivers, or they may occupy abandoned dens of other mammals, such as muskrats. Their tastes in food changes from season to season, but they tend to dine on small mammals such as mice, rabbits, ...