Charity appeals to public to survey endangered water voles

The People’s Trust for Endangered Species (PTES) is calling on all wildlife enthusiasts to help monitor signs of the UK’s disappearing water voles as part of its annual National Water Vole Monitoring Programme.

Affectionately portrayed as Ratty in childhood favourite Wind in the Willows, water voles were once a common sight along UK riverbanks and waterways. However, over the last century water voles have experienced the most severe decline of any wild mammal in the UK as they face threats from invasive American mink, habitat loss, agricultural intensification and river pollution.

In response to this dramatic decline, PTES launched the National Water Vole Monitoring Programme (NWVMP) in 2015, appealing to members of the public to help look for signs and sightings of water voles. The annual survey starts again on 15 April 2018 and runs until 15 June.

Emily Thomas, Key Species Monitoring and Data Officer at PTES explains, “Volunteers are crucial to helping us collect robust data about the state of our water voles across the UK. We use the data gathered to monitor population trends year on year, which in turn helps guide our conservation efforts and inform us where action is needed most.”

Over two hundred volunteers have taken part in the NWVMP since 2015, and last year volunteers collected data from 222 sites across England, Scotland and Wales, of which 82 had water vole signs present (48% of sites surveyed). The distribution of positive sites is encouraging, from Cornwall and Suffolk, up to the Highlands and across to the Isle of Anglesey. However, there are gaps in survey areas where PTES needs more help, including in the South West, parts of Wales, southern Scotland and across the West Midlands.

Volunteers are asked to survey one of the nearly 900 pre-selected sites across the UK, recording all sightings and signs of water voles along a 500m length of riverbank once during the course of the two-month period. Sites that are already being surveyed can also be registered with the NWVMP. Though no prior experience is required, volunteers will need to learn how to identify water vole field signs. A survey pack, including clear instructions on how to do your survey and a field signs ID guide, will be provided.

If you want to support PTES’ ongoing conservation work, you can donate £3 by texting ‘PTES18 £3’ to 70070.