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The People's Trust for Endangered Species (PTES) is asking for volunteers to survey water voles between Tuesday, April 15 and Sunday, June 15. The charity says this is part of national efforts to save the "endearing yet endangered" species. Emily Luck, PTES water vole officer, said: "Water voles hold the unfortunate title of Britain’s fastest declining mammal and are listed as endangered on the Red List for Britain’s Mammals, reflecting the seriousness of their decline.
"Since the 1970s, populations have plummeted by an alarming 90 per cent because of habitat loss, fragmentation and predation from non-native American mink." The PTES says the results of the surveys show how populations are changing, where water voles remain and where they’ve been lost. The charity says this is "crucial" as it allows them to understand how they can help by restoring degraded rivers, improving connectivity between wetlands, and controlling invasive American mink.
Volunteers can choose from more than 700 pre-selected riverbank sites, or an unregistered site if there isn’t a pre-selected option close by. They are asked to visit their chosen site in search of water voles or the tell-tale signs that they’re present, including burrows in the riverbank, droppings, footprints, or the characteristic "plop" as they enter the water. No previous experience is required to take part and PTES offers free ID guides and online training to get started.
Last year, 113 sites were surveyed across Britain, with water voles found at 47 of them. The counties where most water voles were detected were Essex (six), West Sussex (five) and Bedfordshire (four). The survey is part of PTES’ ongoing National Water Vole Monitoring Programme, which celebrates its tenth anniversary this spring.
Over the past decade, more than 2,000 sites have been surveyed by hundreds of volunteers. Nida Al-Fulaij, CEO at PTES, said: "We are hopeful that in time and alongside other organisations and with the help of volunteers, we can together bring water voles back from the brink.".
