These speedy, reddish-brown creatures are our smallest voles. You might spot bank voles scampering through woodlands, hedgerows, and dense vegetation on our canals to feed on nuts and berries.
Bank voles don't hibernate in winter – but they are less active when the temperatures drop.
Bank vole facts
Scientific name: Myodes glareolus
Family: Cricetidae
Diet: Fruit, nuts, and smaller insects
Predators: Birds of prey and larger mammals
Size: 8-12cm with a 4-6cm tail
Weight: 15-40g
Lifespan: 6-18 months
The smallest vole
The bank vole is often seen on the hunt for hazelnuts and blackberries, scurrying along our towpaths. With a keen sense of smell and hearing to help them navigate for food, bank voles are fast and agile creatures. They’re nocturnal but can be spotted during the day and are active throughout the year.
Bank voles and our canals
Bank voles are widespread across a variety of habitats. They're found in areas with dense vegetation that protects them from predators and harsh weather. The banks of canals, with lush and varied plant life, can offer an ideal environment for these small mammals.
Plus, they’re vital to biodiversity. By consuming and spreading seeds, bank voles play a role in propagating plant species. They're also an important food source for other animals on our canals, like owls, kestrels, and snakes.
Bank voles are small rodents with chestnut-brown fur on their back, turning to a greyish-white on their underside. They have small eyes, rounded ears, a blunt muzzle, and a short hairy tail.
A small brown vole with a short, hairless tail and fluffy body perches on a thin branch with sloe berries.
What do bank voles eat?
Bank voles are primarily herbivorous. Their varied diet includes leaves, seeds, nuts, berries, and fruits. Occasionally, bank voles will also feed on insects and fungi.
How do bank voles breed?
Voles typically produce three or four litters of three to seven young between March and October. They breed in shallow burrows and, as territorial creatures, females can get aggressive towards other litters nearby.
Young voles are born without hair or vision. Weaned after 25 days, males reach maturity at eight and females at six. They can live for up to two years, but most fall victim to predators before reaching old age.
Where do bank voles live?
Living in small home ranges, voles fiercely defend their territory against other voles.
Widespread throughout England and Wales, bank voles thrive in woodlands, hedgerows, grasslands, and gardens. They prefer dense vegetation with rich food sources and can also be found along our canals and rivers. Look out for voles among woodland edges and hedgerows. You might catch sight of one scampering past.
They may be small, but bank voles are very fast. Despite being widespread, bank voles are quite hard to spot. As skittish animals, they hide among vegetation or travel underground. Most glimpses are fleeting.
To spot a bank vole, stay still. You might hear a rustling in the undergrowth – the sign of a foraging vole. If you’re quiet, you may also hear their tell-tale growling and squeaking noises.
You don’t have to be on our rural canals, either. You might have luck in urban areas, where bank voles have grown in confidence.
What’s the difference between a bank vole and a field vole?
Bank voles are quite similar in appearance to field voles and mice. The easiest way to spot the difference lies in the tail length. Field vole tails are about a third of the body length, while bank vole tails are half as long as their bodies. Mice have much longer, hairless tails and aren't as stout.
Bank vole populations are relatively stable. But like most of our wildlife, they rely on the preservation and protection of their habitats. Hedgerows and woodlands are important for bank voles and other species on our canals.
