Dave's Urban
Wildlife Control Humane Capture & Removal |
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Dave's Urban
Wildlife Control Humane Capture & Removal |
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Identification Voles, also called meadow mice or field mice, belong to the genus Microtus. Voles are compact rodents with stocky bodies, short legs, and short tails. Their eyes are small and their ears partially hidden. Their underfur is generally dense and covered with thicker, longer guard hairs. They usually are brown or gray, though many color variations exist. There are 23 vole species in the United States. Long-tailed Vole (M. longicaudus). The long-tailed vole can be distin-guished from other Microtus species by its tail, which comprises 30% or more of its total length of 6 to 8 1/2 inches (15 to 21 cm). The long-tailed vole has gray to dark brown fur with many black-tipped hairs. The underparts are gray mixed with some white or yel-low. The tail is indistinctly to sharply bicolored. Pine or Woodland Vole (M. pine-torum). The pine vole is a small vole. Its total length is 4 to 6 inches (10 to 15 cm). Its brown fur is soft and dense. The underparts are gray mixed with some yellow to cinnamon. The tail is barely bicolored or unicolored. General Biology, Reproduction, and Behavior Voles are active day and night, year-round. They do not hibernate. Home range is usually 1/4 acre (0.1 ha) or less but varies with season, population density, habitat, food supply, and other factors. Voles are semifossorial and construct many tunnels and surface runways with numerous burrow entrances. A single burrow system may contain several adults and young. Voles may breed throughout the year, but most commonly in spring and summer. In the field, they have 1 to 5 litters per year. They have produced up to 17 litters per year in a laboratory. Litter sizes range from 1 to 11, but usually average 3 to 6. The gestation period is about 21 days. Young are weaned by the time they are 21 days old, and females mature in 35 to 40 days. Lifespans are short, probably ranging from 2 to 16 months. In one population, there was 88% mortality during the first month of life. Large population fluctuations are characteristic of voles. Population levels generally peak every 2 to 5 years; however, these cycles are not predictable. Occasionally during population irruptions, extremely high vole densities are reached. Dispersal, food quality, climate, predation, physiological stress, and genetics have been shown to influence population levels. Other factors probably also play a part. Many voles are excellent swimmers. The water vole, in fact, escapes predators by swimming and diving. The climbing ability of voles varies. The long-tailed vole, for example, is a good climber (Johnson and Johnson 1982) while the pine vole is a bit clumsy in this regard. Voles are prey for many predators (for example, coyotes, snakes, hawks, owls, and weasels); however, predators do not normally control vole populations.
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Dave's Urban Wildlife Control 2005. All Rights Reserved. |
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