Tons of voles, and a weasel

This water vole has an injury to its eye, but the cut is healing well and the vole seems fine.

This water vole is a young adult, in tip top condition.

  

Various latrines. Very often the presence of feasting slugs will indicate where there's trampled poo!

Four Spotted Chaser?

Green Hairstreak

Slow worm

Excitingly, lots of water vole latrines at Cuckoo Corner, Whixhall Moss.

I put a trail cam out to watch a burrow where activity had declined, and caught this weasel on film! So perhaps the voles have shifted up- or down-stream.

The lovely rounded bottom of a vole.

A climbing vole at White Lion Meadow! They are not built for acrobatics, and

 often fall off into the water.

An adult vole that seems to be blind in one eye. It could be another fighting injury.

Not a great photo, but the first one of a baby vole this year.

Normal Vole Service

I've seen my first baby water vole of the year, but it was too nervous for me to get a photo. However, the adults are showing well - there are two individuals here, the lower one having an injured eye which I'm pleased to say is healing well.

Red Squirrel Takeover!

On a trip to Scotland this weekend I was lucky enough to meet up with a friend who knew of some local red squirrels. It was really interesting to note the colour variations in their coats, and the obvious features denoting sex, which meant my friend could identify individuals with relative ease. So different from water voles who, barring size and scarring, all look pretty similar!

Whitwater Fishing Pool

I checked out Whitwater Fishing Pool (with permission from the owner) and there are some good water vole signs there. They're quite subtle, though, and hard to spot. Meanwhile, activity's still present at White Lion Meadow and Edgeley Road.

Brownies

It's always a joy to share the secrets of wildlife with youngsters. I was lucky enough to be asked to speak to the local Brownie pack, a keen bunch and pretty knowledgeable, about water vole habits and signs. How lucky were we that, while I was talking, a vole swam down to meet us and dived and swam underwater just under our feet! It felt very special. Hope it was a memorable moment too for those young ecologists.

(posted with permission)

Another Lucky Day

 Edgeley Road vole.

 Dingy Skipper (above). Below, Grizzled Skipper.

 Green Hairstreaks.

 Gravid lizard.

 Marsh Orchid.

 Speckled Yellow moth.

Small slow worm.

Bank Holiday Box of Delights

 Common lizard, Whixall Moss. Below, a Willow Warbler being ringed.

 Wonderful adder!

 Emperor Moths

 Garden Tiger Moth, Prees Heath

 Sedge Warbler, Whixall Moss

White Lion Meadow vole.