Friday 25 September 2009

Edward German Drive - good landowners

Baby water vole, taken by my friend James. More at his blog here: http://riveranton.blogspot.com/

Edwards German Drive - the side that's overhung by dense tree foliage

Edward German Drive -the side that's fairly clear and light (better for water voles)

Water vole droppings, Edward German Drive.

Fresh otter spraint under the bridge, Country Park.

Otter tracks (I think) emerging from the water under the bridge


Large adult water vole.

A hunt along the brook by Edward German drive shows water vole presence all along the stretch that joins Waylands Crescent - prints, feeding and droppings. I have once found a latrine down the other stretch, by Griffiths Tool Hire, but in general those banks are too shaded by householders' hedges for much to grow, so unsuitable for water voles. However, I was delighted when a man came out of one of the houses and asked me about pruning back the bushes at the end of his garden, so as to make it better for the voles.

2 comments:

Kath McGurl said...

Is this another site near you? They seem to be flourishing which is great.

Kate said...

Yes, EGD is round the corner from my road.

I don't think it's been a bad year for water voles overall, but there've been gains and losses as regards individual colonies. I'll post a round-up at the weekend.