Pleased to say I had great views of a swimming water vole on Sunday - the first sighting for 2 weeks and only the second in 4 weeks. It was "White Eyes", a 'senior' vole with a bit of mange - and one that loves demolishing a particular elder bush :-)
Banks very overgrown, with a lot of overhanging vegetation, so it was a lucky sighting - the vole 'colliding' with a young moorhen was what alerted me. The grass snake has been seen again..
I'd love to have seen that collision! Good news about your voles. I'm struggling to see mine - I know they're there, but they won't come out of the long grass. V envious of your snake.
Yes, dense vegetation is certainly limiting sightings here as well - it's great protection for the voles though, with so many predators to contend with..
I reckon April and May in particular are the best months for regular and frequent water vole sightings.
(P.S. The water shrew pic looks like it is next to a lurking alligator...!)
This blog charts the fortunes of water voles in and around the Whitchurch area, North Shropshire. Water voles are one of the UK's most threatened mammals, extinct in many counties, and so it's vital they receive as much monitoring and protection as there is going. Here in Whitchurch we're lucky enough to have them right in the middle of town - how cool is that?
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Fabulous pics again - and I love the tiny toad !
Pleased to say I had great views of a swimming water vole on Sunday - the first sighting for 2 weeks and only the second in 4 weeks. It was "White Eyes", a 'senior' vole with a bit of mange - and one that loves demolishing a particular elder bush :-)
Banks very overgrown, with a lot of overhanging vegetation, so it was a lucky sighting - the vole 'colliding' with a young moorhen was what alerted me. The grass snake has been seen again..
I'd love to have seen that collision! Good news about your voles. I'm struggling to see mine - I know they're there, but they won't come out of the long grass. V envious of your snake.
Yes, dense vegetation is certainly limiting sightings here as well - it's great protection for the voles though, with so many predators to contend with..
I reckon April and May in particular are the best months for regular and frequent water vole sightings.
(P.S. The water shrew pic looks like it is next to a lurking alligator...!)
Nice photos Kate.
Thanks. I haven't managed to get a vole photo for a week and a half. They're too quick!
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