Field vole
| Field vole | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Mammalia |
| Order: | Rodentia |
| Family: | Cricetidae |
| Subfamily: | Arvicolinae |
| Genus: | Microtus |
| Subgenus: | Microtus |
| Species: | M. agrestis |
| Binomial name | |
|
Microtus agrestis (Linnaeus, 1761) |
|
The field vole or short-tailed vole (Microtus agrestis) is a grey-brown vole, around four inches (ten centimetres) in length, with a short tail. It is one of the most common mammals in Europe, with a range extending from the Atlantic coast to Lake Baikal. These voles are found in moist grassy habitats, such as woodland, marsh or on river banks. Although they make shallow burrows, they usually build nests above ground. They are an important food source for owls and some other predators and their population size tends to peak and trough cyclically. Field voles breed prolifically, mainly in summer, but often all year round, even under snow. Females produce up to seven litters a year, each averaging from four to six young which are weaned after about fourteen days. The field vole is both widespread and common and is listed as being of "Least Concern" by the IUCN.
The field vole is a small, dark brown rodent with a short tail, distinguishable from the closely related common vole (Microtus arvalis) by its darker, longer and shaggier hair and by its more densely haired ears. The head and body length varies between 3.75 and 5.25 inches (95 and 133 mm) and the tail between 1 and 1.75 inches (25 and 44 mm). The weight is 0.7 to 1.8 ounces (20 to 51 g). The voice is a faint, low squeak and it also emits a range of chattering sounds.
The field vole has a palearctic distribution. Its range extends throughout Western Europe and eastwards to Lake Baikal in Siberia and north west China and northward to Norway, Sweden and Finland. It is absent from Iceland and Ireland and thins out southwards towards the Mediterranean Sea. It is found in a range of habitats including meadows, field borders, plantations, woodland verges, clearings, upland heaths, dunes, marshes, bogs and river banks and tends to prefer wet areas. It is found at altitudes of up to about 1,700 metres (5,600 ft).
The field vole is more active by day than the common vole. It excavates shallow burrows close to the surface of the ground, under leaf litter and under snow in winter. It also makes surface runs through tall vegetation, routes along which it can scurry back to safety if danger threatens. Off these are dedicated defecation sites and it often leaves little piles of chopped up grass stalks nearby.
...
Wikipedia