Voles in the Garden
Common Small Rodents not often seen
Identification
Voles are light brown / grey animals, on average about 4" long when fully grown, although some have apparently been seen up to 8" long.
They have short stumpy roundish faces, small ears, eys and tail.
If you think Mice are pretty good reproducers, so are Voles, they can produce up to ten litters a year!
Where to see them
Voles like fairly unkept areas especially next to grass, so you'll usually see them along the sides of hedgerows or long grass / shrub. I've found mine are partial to around the Compost bin areas and live under sheets of currugated iron or the floorboards of the Chicken Coop.
They are predated by Foxes, Stoats, Weasels, domestic Cats and Owls.
What they eat
Being vegetarians they will eat most things green, mainly grass. They are also partial to fruit so will often be seen living in Orchards, the combination of long grass plus fruit is a good combination for them.
