September 6, 2009 - Moles & Voles

Welcome to the Nature Notebook.

Mention voles and most people picture a small, blind creature with large digging feet that spends most of its time underground. This is a mole. Meadow voles are entirely different creatures. These small, short-faced rodents have small ears and a short tail. They live in grassy fields in a system of runways at ground level hidden under the grass. Voles eat seeds, stalks and roots of grasses, clover, plantains and other green plants. They are an important link in the food chain turning green plants into animal protein. In turn, voles are the mainstay in the diets of foxes, coyotes, snakes, hawks, owls and other common predators. Their rapid reproduction keeps their populations relatively high despite all the predation. Because of their nocturnal activity we don’t often see voles unless a housecat deposits one on the doorstep.
 
This is PPL's naturalist, Jon Beam, with the Nature Notebook for WVIA.