Bank Vole
Encyclopedia
The bank vole is a small vole
with red-brown fur and some grey patches, with a tail about half as long as its body. A rodent, it lives in woodland
areas and is around 100 millimetres (3.9 in) in length. The bank vole is found in western Europe
and northern Asia
. It is native to Great Britain
but not to Ireland
, where it has been accidentally introduced, and has now colonised much of the south and southwest.
The bank vole lives in woodland
, hedgerows and other dense vegetation such as bracken
and bramble
. Its underground chamber is lined with moss, feathers and vegetable fibre and contains a store of food. It can live for 18 months and is omnivorous, eating insects, leaves and fruits such as raspberries
and hazel
nuts. It readily climbs into scrub and low branches of trees.
In areas such as Great Britain, where the only other small vole is the short-tailed vole (Microtus agrestis), the bank vole is distinguished by its more prominent ears, chestnut-brown fur and longer tail.
Vole
A vole is a small rodent resembling a mouse but with a stouter body, a shorter hairy tail, a slightly rounder head, smaller ears and eyes, and differently formed molars . There are approximately 155 species of voles. They are sometimes known as meadow mice or field mice in North America...
with red-brown fur and some grey patches, with a tail about half as long as its body. A rodent, it lives in woodland
Woodland
Ecologically, a woodland is a low-density forest forming open habitats with plenty of sunlight and limited shade. Woodlands may support an understory of shrubs and herbaceous plants including grasses. Woodland may form a transition to shrubland under drier conditions or during early stages of...
areas and is around 100 millimetres (3.9 in) in length. The bank vole is found in western Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
and northern Asia
Asia
Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent, located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres. It covers 8.7% of the Earth's total surface area and with approximately 3.879 billion people, it hosts 60% of the world's current human population...
. It is native to Great Britain
Great Britain
Great Britain or Britain is an island situated to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the ninth largest island in the world, and the largest European island, as well as the largest of the British Isles...
but not to Ireland
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
, where it has been accidentally introduced, and has now colonised much of the south and southwest.
The bank vole lives in woodland
Woodland
Ecologically, a woodland is a low-density forest forming open habitats with plenty of sunlight and limited shade. Woodlands may support an understory of shrubs and herbaceous plants including grasses. Woodland may form a transition to shrubland under drier conditions or during early stages of...
, hedgerows and other dense vegetation such as bracken
Bracken
Bracken are several species of large, coarse ferns of the genus Pteridium. Ferns are vascular plants that have alternating generations, large plants that produce spores and small plants that produce sex cells . Brackens are in the family Dennstaedtiaceae, which are noted for their large, highly...
and bramble
Bramble
Brambles are thorny plants of the genus Rubus, in the rose family . Bramble fruit is the fruit of any such plant, including the blackberry and raspberry. The word comes from Germanic *bram-bezi, whence also German Brombeere , Dutch Braam and French framboise...
. Its underground chamber is lined with moss, feathers and vegetable fibre and contains a store of food. It can live for 18 months and is omnivorous, eating insects, leaves and fruits such as raspberries
Raspberry
The raspberry or hindberry is the edible fruit of a multitude of plant species in the genus Rubus, most of which are in the subgenus Idaeobatus; the name also applies to these plants themselves...
and hazel
Hazel
The hazels are a genus of deciduous trees and large shrubs native to the temperate northern hemisphere. The genus is usually placed in the birch family Betulaceae, though some botanists split the hazels into a separate family Corylaceae.They have simple, rounded leaves with double-serrate margins...
nuts. It readily climbs into scrub and low branches of trees.
In areas such as Great Britain, where the only other small vole is the short-tailed vole (Microtus agrestis), the bank vole is distinguished by its more prominent ears, chestnut-brown fur and longer tail.
External links
- ARKive Photos,Video.