Table of Contents
What is the scientific name for a vole?
The common vole (Microtus arvalis) is a European rodent.
What taxonomic group is a vole in?
| Vole | |
|---|---|
| Class: | Mammalia |
| Order: | Rodentia |
| Family: | Cricetidae |
| Subfamily: | Arvicolinae |
Is the meadow vole a mammal?
meadow vole, (Microtus pennsylvanicus), also called meadow mouse, one of the most common and prolific small mammals in North America. Weighing less than 50 grams (1.8 ounces), this stout vole is 15 to 20 cm (5.9 to 7.9 inches) long, including its short tail (3 to 6 cm).
Are meadow voles endangered?
Not extinct
Meadow voles/Extinction status
Are meadow voles nocturnal or diurnal?
The meadow vole (Microtus pennsylvanicus) is one of the most common mammals in North America. Its geographic range spans most of Canada and the conterminous United States as well as most of Alaska. Voles are active year-round. Some species are nocturnal, some are diurnal, and others are active day and night.
How many voles are in a colony?
How many voles are in a colony and what makes up a colony? There may be two adults, several juveniles, and a nest with up to 5 babies in a family colony. Adults are thought to defend their home habitat or territory from invasion by other voles.
Do voles live in groups?
Are meadow voles herbivores?
Food and Feeding Behavior: Like many small herbivores, the meadow vole occasionally eats insects or other invertebrates but, grasses, sedges, seeds, tubers, and roots comprise most of the diet.
Are meadow voles mice?
Meadow voles also known as “meadow mice” or just plain “voles” are blunt-nosed, short-tailed mice that love to eat bulbs, hostas and tree roots, but when those are not available they will eat grass roots.
Are meadow voles solitary?
Adult meadow voles (Microtus pennsylvanicus) are solitary in the spring–summer reproductive season, but during winter months, females and males are socially tolerant and aggregate in groups.
What are meadow voles niche in an ecosystem?
Ecological niche Due to digging, Meadow voles contribute to aeration of the soil. Feeding upon grass, they recycle the nutrients, found in the grass, through defecation. And finally, these voles are key prey species for a number of predators, including owls, small hawks and falcons.
Are meadow voles nocturnal?
The meadow vole (Microtus pennsylvanicus) is one of the most common mammals in North America. Voles are active year-round. Some species are nocturnal, some are diurnal, and others are active day and night. Their diet consists of plants and occasionally insects and fungi.