Water Vole

Arvicola sapidus

Water voles are small, furry animals that love to live near rivers and ponds. They are great swimmers and have cute little faces!

Habitat: Wetlands, rivers, and ponds

Appearance

The Water Vole has dense brown fur, a stout body, and a blunt nose. Unlike a rat, it possesses small, rounded ears almost hidden in its fur, and a short, furry tail. Its appearance is well-adapted for life near water.

KingdomAnimaliaPhylumChordataClassMammaliaOrderRodentiaFamilyCricetidaeGenusArvicola

Water Vole

Interesting facts

A water vole family can have five litters in just one year!

Their teeth never stop growing, so they gnaw plants to keep them short!

They make secret paths in tall grass, like mini highways!

Water voles can create underwater entrances to their burrows!

Special abilities

Water Vole has powerful claws and teeth that help them dig intricate tunnel systems and burrows into riverbanks for shelter and safety.

Water Vole can eat many kinds of plants, like reeds and grasses, because of its specialized digestive system, that helps them thrive on a plant-based diet.

Measurements & details

Length: 16-24 cm
Weight: 0.16-0.35 kg
Lifespan: 1-2 years
Top Speed: 10 km/h
Litter Size: 4-6
Gestation: 20-22 days

Diet & Feeding

Mostly eats plants like grasses, sedges, and roots found near water.

Primary Foods

Grasses
Sedges
Reeds
Roots
Water Plants

Foraging Method

Foraging

Ecological connections

eaten by

Eurasian Otter

Lutra lutra

Otters are skilled hunters of aquatic mammals.

eaten by

Stoat

Mustela erminea

Stoats are swift predators hunting small rodents.

eaten by

Barn Owl

Tyto alba

Owls hunt them from the air, especially at dusk.

eats

Slender Tufted Sedge

Carex acuta

They frequently feed on the leaves and stems of sedges.

eats

Common Reed

Phragmites australis

Water voles often consume new shoots and stems of reeds.

Traits

Wildlife

Wildlife encompasses all undomesticated animal and plant life existing in their natural habitats.

Furry

Furry describes animals possessing a dense covering of soft hair or fur.

Social

Social animals live in organized groups, cooperating for survival benefits such as foraging, defense, and raising offspring.

Burrowing

Burrowing animals dig tunnels and chambers in the ground, using these subterranean structures for shelter, hunting, or breeding.

Herbivorous

This trait characterizes organisms whose diet consists entirely or primarily of plant material.

Wetland

This habitat trait identifies species found in wetlands, which are areas of land saturated with water, either permanently or seasonally, including marshes, swamps, and bogs.