American mink

Answer and linking clues

Correct order: A, B, D, C

1. A. The American mink has been present in Iceland since the 1930's and despite heavy hunting since 1939 the species has become well established.
2. B. The ecosystem in Iceland is simpler than in other areas where mink are found; the only other mammalian predator is the arctic fox.
3. D. Direct competition between these species appears to be minimal although the arctic fox will sometimes chase mink and disturb them while foraging.
4. C. Iceland is therefore an ideal place to study undisturbed feeding behaviour and ecology of mink.

Why this order

• A comes first: it introduces the topic and needs no sentence before it.
• B follows A: it opens with “The ecosystem”, which points back to something already mentioned; it picks up “Iceland”, “mink” from A.
• D follows B: it picks up “arctic”, “mink” from B.
• C follows D: it picks up “mink” from D.

RealPTE numbers

• Student reports: High frequency (19 reports)

From RealPTE practice records and students’ “I sat this” reports, counted weekly (last count 2026-10-21). Reports are what students tell us; predictions are not guaranteed.

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