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Monday, 15 November, 1999, 11:01 GMT
Rescue plan for Ratty
![]() The water vole: Pushed to extinction by the mink
A much greater effort is needed if the water vole, Britain's fastest declining mammal species, is to be saved from extinction, say Oxford University scientists. One of main threats comes from deadly attacks by escaped mink.
The water vole, popularised by the fictional character Ratty in Wind in the Willows, used to be a very common sight along riverbanks but is now disappearing at such a rapid rate that it is likely to become extinct in the next few years.
In particular, he says every effort should be made to help the animal evade the clutches of its most serious predator, the American mink, many of which have escaped or been released from fur farms. There are probably now about 10,000 mink in the wild as a result. "American mink are truly marvellous animals, one can only be in awe of their adaptability," says Professor MacDonald. "However, it is tragic that such an intriguing, and beautiful, species should find itself a pest due to the folly of those who thoughtlessly transported them beyond their native range in North America." WildCRU has released two reports. One details the numbers of water voles at sites across the UK on such rivers as the Thames, Windrush, Teifi, Itchen, Arun, Bure, the Oxford Canal and on the islands of Sheppey and Wight. Numbers are now just a third of what they used to be. The report also includes an assessment of the different threats the water voles face. As well as the mink, these include:
The recommendations include:
"All too many modern riverbanks provide scarcely more than a ribbon of fringing vegetation so narrow that any patrolling mink is certain to find water voles," says Professor McDonald. "It is like a tightrope on which the water vole teeters, but off which it can easily plummet to extinction when dislodged by the mink." The reports have been published in collaboration with the UK's Environment Agency, English Nature, and the Scottish Environment Protection Agency. All images from the Wildlife Trusts> |
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