Water vole
Arvicola terrestris
The water vole is Britain’s largest vole, recongised by its hairy tail, rounded face and body and short ears. Water voles live on the densely vegetated banks of slow moving water courses, including rivers, streams and ditches. They are predominantly vegetarian and, feeding on a wide variety of plants, mainly grasses, reeds, sedges and rushes. They have extensive burrow systems with entrances below and above the water.
Once a familiar sight in lowland Britain water vole populations have been plummeting. It is believed to be our most declining mammal with the Mammal Society estimating that it is now absent from over 90% of sites occupied in the 1900’s. The reasons for its decline are complex but involve a combination of loss and fragmentation of beckside habitats, changes in watercourse management, and predation by mink which have spread through our countryside. As a result the water vole is a legally protected species and a priority species in the UK Biodiversity Action Plan.
In the Tees Valley local declines have mirrored the national pattern; however water voles do thrive in parts of the Tees Valley. One example is the urban Becks of Middlesbrough where the Tees Valley Wildlife Trust, Environment Agency and Middlesbrough Council are working together to promote their conservation and expansion.
