Still Shy

Another water vole sighting at White Lion Meadow, plus some feeding outside the wood yard.

Below, I came across this polecat that had been killed on the road, so stopped to double-check it wasn't an otter or mink (which you have to report). I took the opportunity to photograph its paws which are very powerful, and its fuzzy tail.

The Mustelid Contingent

Stoat

Water vole

Adult rat - the relative sizes

It was a surprise to pick up this stoat on the trail cam. This makes the fourth mustelid I've seen in the field (if you count finding otter spraint as a 'sighting'). I've also seen weasels and a polecat here. All these predators will eat water voles, but because they're native and in the balance, vole numbers stay buoyant. The worry is if mink invade, because they are non-native carnivores and can wipe out whole colonies of water voles in a matter of weeks.

Tailing off

Latrine

Prints

I'm getting fewer sightings now, even though it's not even September. Tempting to start worrying about the impact of the polecat, but really I think it's just the usual autumn dispersal as, firstly, this is a pattern I've observed over the last six years and secondly, I'm still counting lots of freshly-attended latrines. It's possible the adults who were so forward a couple of weeks ago, climbing on my boot and investigating my bag, have been predated as I've not seen any sign of them for a while. But there are plenty of youngsters still about, including a very small vole not long out of the nest - I'm guessing not much older than five or six week at the most. As you can see from photo 5, he's only about the size of a nettle leaf.

Native Predators

Polecat

Greenfields water vole survey: these tiny mud-coloured droppings (lower right) are what we're looking for

...and this is where we're looking, in amongst this vegetation. Needle in a haystack doesn't come close.

It's helpful when animals leave their scat on prominent places

as this Grindley Brook otter has done.

I was watching for water voles and seeing none when this polecat slunk past on the far bank. All mustelids will take a vole if they get the opportunity, and there are already weasels and otters recorded for this stretch. However I'm hoping the polecat doesn't impact too far on the Edgeley Road colony. There are good vole numbers here, at least.