Water vole activity or not?

[vole-woman]

A tracking device like this: About a Brook: The "Whitchurch Plate" might tell you whether you had water voles or not. But it's w-v droppings which are the real giveaway - look out for those.

[shirl]

Originally Posted by vole-woman

A tracking device like this: About a Brook: The "Whitchurch Plate" might tell you whether you had water voles or not. But it's w-v droppings which are the real giveaway - look out for those.

Completely agree, in the absence of an actual water vole sighting the droppings are the next best thing. Have a good look round as there should be some scattered droppings and hopefully latrines. Water voles can eat snails sometimes, maybe an expectant female might do to boost protein levels. But there are rather alot of snail shells from what you said so could be rat. Good luck hunting droppings, take a photo if you can and post it here.

Shirl

[newt_man]

Hi all,

I have recently come across some piles of frogs on the Kennet & Avon canal within close proximity to water vole latrines and feeding stations. I found one and thought it was a bit odd but found 2 more in the section that I was surveying.

I am not 100% sure that water voles had eaten them but I did not find any signs of rat or mink. I think it would be an interesting study for someone to do about whether water voles will eat meat in certain circumstances e.g. pregnancy, mineral deficiency etc.

I have some photos but I cannot work out how to post them on here, can someone tell me how and I will be more than happy to show them to people to see what they think.

[vole-woman]

There are records of pregnant water voles eating fish, and I suspect they eat water snails as I've many times found piles of nibbled ramshorn shells next to chopped vegetation and latrines. But frogs seem a bit big.

I found a half-eaten frog in a pile of otter spraint last week, so it could be otter predation we're looking at.

What do other 'volers' think?

[eigg head]

It's just been announced that ecologists have found evidence of water voles eating frogs legs on the Kennet and Avon Canal.

[vole-woman]

Wow!

[vole-woman]

Here's the story: BBC News - Vegetarian water voles start eating frogs' legs

[shirl]

That really is so unusual, I wonder if the frogs had died and they just took advantage of a bit of extra protein? Will they analyse the water vole droppings to confirm that they really have been eating frogs legs, and why only the legs? Could there be another mammal taking advantage and the dead bodies near water voles are just co-incidence - very odd indeed.

Shirl