Even when you don't see actual water voles...

...you can tell they've been around. This fresh latrine was outside the timber yard, which suggests the population by the car park is expanded to the point where that stretch won't suffice. There are burrows by the timber yard, too.

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And the feeding station, together with more burrows, I discovered at the back of Edward German Drive. There won't be any more water voles in the bank where I photographed one last year ( http://staggsbrook.blogspot.com/2007/05/rafts.html ) because someone's installed woooden palings that go down to the water level. But there are voles further up, which is great. Cats are unfortunately a problem round here, though.

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Two adults feeding tonight at White Lion Meadow.

Distance

Two voles this evening again, eating very near to each other - you can see how close in picture two. I don't know whether this means they're mates or siblings; normally water voles are very territorial creatures, so I assume a close relationship between these two.

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In looking at another stretch of the brook, I surprised a family of wrens, and managed to snap this just-fledged little chap. And this afternoon, at Fordhall Farm, I saw a kingfisher. Top day's nature-study!

Can you see me?

I've been away all week, but I'm pleased to report there's been a steady stream of sightings at White Lion Meadow car park, and I went down last night and saw, straight away, an absolutely huge vole. It's getting difficult to spot anything now, though, as the vegetation's so lush (second photo down). So if a vole like the one in photo 3 stays quite still, you may miss it completely!

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I include this beautiful picture of a surprised baby water vole, taken by my friend on the Wild About Britain forums. What a smashing shot - puts all mine to shame.

Dead Water Vole

Went to check the rafts at Prees Branch Canal again, and almost immediately found a dead water vole on the path. It didn't seem marked in any way, which to me suggested a cat had killed it, and when I mentioned it to the lady who lives in the end cottage, she said she'd seen one hanging about. So many things will take a water vole - herons, swans, rats, all mustelids (weasels, stoats, mink, polecats, otters, pine martens), many birds of prey, pike and foxes - so it's depressing to have to add cats into the mix as well. At least when an owl takes a vole, it's to feed itself. I'd ask all cat owners to fit their pets' collars with a bell, and to keep them in between dusk and dawn (cats are safer kept in at night anyway, as this is the time of day a lot get run over).

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Anyway, I was able to get close-up photos of the hind feet, tail and teeth, and to measure it; this water vole was 11cm from nose to rump. The orange teeth are a characteristic of adult water voles, and can be seen on my earlier post about the skull. Water voles' teeth are used for digging, so they do have to be very large.

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Still quite a lot of feeding going on down the canal length, including again some nibbled snails (see fourth photo down), and when I checked the lower raft, there were fresh water vole droppings on the wood section and on the clay.

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I include the top picture to show good landowner practice: this farmer has allowed a protected margin of vegetation along the side of the canal, and built a cattle drinker so his bullocks can come down to the water without trampling the banks into a muddy mess. I've done survey work round this farm ( http://staggsbrook.blogspot.com/2007/06/whixall-hall-farm.html ) and the owner is very keen on nature. Three cheers for people like this!

Newts and efts

Couldn't resist posting these pictures of a female common newt and baby (eft), both from our pond. The eft has frilly external gills at its neck, and is altogether much more delicately-formed than a froglet.

Shropshire: surely the loveliest county?

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A packed evening! Found a whole load more of these things below, which I think may be corvid pellets, on the bridge at Yockings Gate. Lower down the stream, in the field near the railway bridge (top photo), I uncovered a water vole latrine, and then there was this lovely big vole down at White Lion Meadow who posed obligingly.

Two voles this evening

All I got was the back end of the other.

Still getting steady sightings. Click on this link to see them summarized in a graph: http://www.woodlanereserve.co.uk/volesummary.htm

Two voles tonight

The reeds in the centre of the brook are geting so tall now it's hard to see. But this is much-needed cover for the voles.

Here's our rabbit - he came from the direction of the swimming baths, but I still can't see there's a lot of cover for him in that area. Tonight's vole obligingly shows its ears: very small and close to its head, as opposed to a rat's or a mouse's.

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Took a walk round brown Moss today and found a feeding station that I'm fairly sure was water vole near the first bridge. That's not the one pictured above, though, as I didn't have my camera. The middle photo's from White Lion Meadow.

Lawns

I include the photo immediately above because it shows that typical rounded vole outline. The top one gives a good view of a water vole's hairy tail. I've been trying to get a decent shot of a water vole 'lawn', the grazed area often near a burrow, but my pictures aren't showing the different textures very well. There are, though, a lot of these lawns along the bank, and several flattened areas where a large-bottomed vole has sat feeding.

Rabbit

Two water voles tonight; also was amazed to see a rabbit on the bank. I've never seen one here before and can't think where one would have come from, unless it travelled under the road through the culvert. Also, unfortunately, a rat. Will keep a close eye on the latter, and alert the council if it looks as though the voles are being affected.

When water voles are suspicious

...they stand up on their hind legs like the one in the top photo, and scent the air. This pose reveals their paler ventral (belly) fur that helps camouflage them from underwater predators such as pike.

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This was a really big vole; I'd say as large as a guinea pig.

Whixall Moss and White Lion Meadow

Spent all day as part of a survey team covering several areas of Whixall Moss. The results were really good - I'll post more specific information as it's available. While I was there I also saw a white-legged damselfly, and a green hairstreak butterfly. It's an amazing nature reserve, but you do have to be careful if you stray off the path. There are some places which look completely solid but aren't!

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Watched this White Lion Meadow vole tonight, and finally managed to get a few snaps.

New Vole Area

Albert from the Whitchurch Water Vole group has mentioned the fields near Saddlers Walk before, but I've never properly investigated. Went for a walk just now and found this big feeding station in the reeds, even though the water itself isn't very deep. There was lots of field vole feeding too, and the trees were full of goldfinches. Anyone put a name to this caterpillar?