The Bank Vole foraging for food in an old Scottish pine woodland. SCO 8823
The bank vole lives in woodland, hedgerows and other dense vegetation such as bracken and bramble. Its underground chamber is lined with moss, feathers and vegetable fibre and contains a store of food. It can live for 18 months and is omnivorous, eating insects, leaves and fruits such as raspberries and hazel nuts. It readily climbs into scrub and low branches of trees. In areas such as Great Britain, where the only other small vole is the short-tailed vole (Microtus agrestis), the bank vole is distinguished by its more prominent ears, chestnut-brown fur and longer tail. Usually born anytime between April and October, the litter often contains three to five young and a mother can often produce as many as five litters in a year. As with most rodents, the life expectancy is short with about only a half living beyond four months. However, where the conditions are right, a bank vole can live for between 18 months and 2 years. The young are blind and hairless when first born and they spend the first weeks being weaned on their mother's milk, in an underground nest - nests above ground perhaps in tree crevices are sometimes built - that is usually lined with moss and feathers.
Size: 5812px × 4211px
Location: Strathspey Caledonian Pine Forest, Cairngorms National Park. Nethybridge. Scotland.
Photo credit: © David Gowans / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No
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