Emma's Mammal Web Page

The Meadow Vole

Kingdom-

Animalia

Phylum-

Chorodata

Class-

Mammalia

Order-

Rodentia

Family-

Muridae

Genius-

Microtus

Species-

pennsylvanicus

Description

Habitat

Range

Food

Life Cycle

Survival

Facts

Human Impact

References

Links

http://www.fargo.k12.nd.us/project/ndwebsite/vole.htm

Description

The total length of the Meadow Vole is from 128-195 mm. Its tail is about 40% of the body length. The dorsal surface is dark blackish brown to dark reddish brown with coarse black hairs. The ventral surface is more gray or white and may be tinged with light brown. The winter pelage is duller and more gray. The gender does not make a difference in the size colors.     

weaselhead.org/.../meadow_vole/ images/big/meadow_vole.jpg

Habitat

The Meadow Vole can be found in mainly meadows, lowland fields, grassy marshes, and along rivers and lakes. They are also occasionally found in flooded marshes, high grasslands near water, and orchards or open woodland if grassy.  

http://www.yahooligans.com/content/animals/photo/3952.html

Range

The Meadow Vole is the most wide spread vole in North America. Its east to west range is continuous from central Alaska to the Atlantic coast. South of the Canadian border, its western limit is the Rocky mountains. The Meadow Vole is found as far south as New Mexico and Georgia.      

http://www.bellmuseum.org/mnideals/prairie/fieldguide/meadowvole.html

Food

The Meadow Vole feeds mainly on the fresh grass, sedges. and herbs that are found locally within its range. It will also eat a variety of seeds and grains. It will also eat tubers and bulbs when available. When it overlaps the range of  cranberries, the Meadow Vole will feed extensively on these fruits. It also eats other types of fruit. The Meadow Vole will eat flesh and is cannibalistic 
especially on new born young. The Meadow Vole is a voracious eater, consuming close to 60% of its body weight. When eating, it sits up and will stand to gnaw bark or a grain stalk. They also eat some small snails and insects. Some of their predators are: Red Fox, Striped Skunk, Eastern Chipmunk, Raccoon, Common Crow, Great Blue Heron, Barred Owl, Red-tailed Hawk, Least Shrew, Black Rat Snake, and Eastern Hognose Snake. There are many more.

http://www.patrickmarsh.org/99smres.html

Life Cycle

The Meadow Vole lives no longer than one year in the wild. But in captivity, they can live up to several years.

http://www.huntington.edu/thornhill/checklists/commonmammals.htm

Survival

The Meadow Vole needs food, water, and shelter to survive. Some of the shelter they use are: Red Clover, Wild Grape, Poison Ivy, Virginia Creeper, Bracken Fern, Greenbrier, Smooth Sumac, Common Reed, Switchgrass, Lamb's Quarters, Common Ragweed, and the Common Elderberry. Some of their natural predators are: Red Fox, Raccoon, and the Barred Owl.

http://images.google.com/images?q=meadow+vole&svnum=10&hl=en&lr=&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&start=100&sa=N

Facts

INTERESTING FACTS                                                                                                       

1.)This vole destroys many weeds especially weed grasses, and serves as food for some fur animals and other predators.                                                     

2.)When abundant, the Meadow Vole can be a pest. It can do considerable dam- age to growing grain and is also a problem in orchards and forestry plantings. 

3.)It also first appeared in the Late Pleistocene and is very abundant fossil record.                                                                                                       

4.)In Newfoundland, this is the only native small mammal prey of carnivores. 

5.)Following snow melt in the Spring, vole tunnels in grassy areas are readily seen during high population years.                                                               

6.)Many carnivorous animals such as owls, snakes, fish, weasels, and marten are predators to the Meadow Vole. 

http://animaldiversity.ummz.umich.edu/media/phil/

Human Impact

The Meadow Vole eats some of the plants that we would call weeds. One of the foods they eat is called the common Ragweed. They have no other human impact.  

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For comments or questions contact Bill Wight at  billw@sbschools.net