Bye till the Spring!
Burrow leading directly into the water.
Small feeding station. 
Latrine.
Classic starry footprint.
Multiple prints - look a lot like rats', but the droppings give it away that these are water vole.
It's becoming too cold to sit and wait for voles to come out, so this will probably be the last w-v photo of the season. I thought I'd round off with some pictures of the main field signs, courtesy of the colony off Edgeley Road.2010 hasn't been a bad year generally for water voles in Whitchurch, though the Country Park's suffered a population crash due to predation by mink. I don't know how long this stretch will take to recover; a lot depends on how healthy the colonies are on either side. I'll be watching carefully next spring and summer to see what happens.
Staggs brook has a lot of water in it at the moment by Greenfields.
ReplyDeleteYes, I was down there at 4 and I could see how high the water level was.
ReplyDeleteBye bye voles, see you next year. Have a snug and safe winter.
ReplyDeleteI found your site by sliding around the "next blog" button, and I am so glad I did! It brings to mind the words, "Oh, Ratty! Oh, Voley!"
ReplyDeleteAll of us slugs wish all of the voles a snuggly winters sleep. We appreciate the voles love of water and share in the excitement of a nice feeding station! Please feel free to visit Slug's Rest anytime!
Love,
Mrs. Slug
Goodness! I'm guessing you're not a fan of Mr Hedgehog ;-) Are there water voles where you live?
ReplyDelete