Reconnecting Our South Wales Water Voles – Nia Stephens – WTSWW (2014)

Reconnecting our South Wales Water Voles – Nia Stephens – WTSWW (2014)

Reconnecting our South Wales Water Voles

Nia Stephens – Water Vole Officer - Wildlife Trust of South and West Wales

Report to Natural Resources Wales Supported by the Welsh Government Resilient Ecosystems Fund, through Natural Resources Wales

December 2014

The Wildlife Trust of South and West Wales The Nature Centre Fountain Road Tondu Bridgend CF32 0EH www.welshwildlife.org

Reconnecting our South Wales Water Voles – Nia Stephens – WTSWW (2014)

Contents

1. Introduction 1.1 The Water Vole 1.2 American Mink 1.3 Habitat Degradation 1.4 Water Voles in Wales 1.5 The Project

2. Methods 2.1 Survey Site Selection 2.2 Landowner Contacts 2.3 The Survey 2.4 Capital Works

3. Results 3.1 Sites Surveyed 3.2 Positive Records 3.3 Negative Records 3.4 Potential Capital Works

4. Discussion

5. Recommendations

6. References

7. Appendices Appendix 1 Farmer’s Questionnaire Appendix 2 Field Survey Sheet Appendix 3 Table showing water vole records Appendix 4 Table showing all land surveyed Appendix 5 Table showing potential works

Contents of Plates, Figures and Tables

Plates 1 and 2. Examples of typical water vole habitat in upland Ceredigion Plate 3. Pile of feeding remains containing soft rush Plate 4. Photograph highlighting the difference between water vole and field vole droppings Plate 5. Example of unsuitable habitat – a steep, fast flowing stream with heavily grazed banks Plate 6. Photograph showing the benefit of bank fencing a ditch to avoid poaching by livestock Figure 1. Example of some water vole key areas identified in Ceredigion based on previous records Figure 2. Map showing positive water vole records in blue and negative records in red Figure 3. Map showing positive water vole records in Ceredigion Figure 4. Map showing mink (red) and water vole (blue) records in Wales Table 1. Table showing potential capital works with costings

Reconnecting our South Wales Water Voles – Nia Stephens – WTSWW (2014)

1. Introduction

1.1 The Water Vole The European water vole (Arvicola amphibius) is the largest of the British voles. It lives along watercourses preferring sites with wide swathes of riparian vegetation, slow flowing water and earth or silt banks (Strachan 2011). It has been named a flagship wetland species and water voles are often considered an indicator of habitat quality.

The water vole is a species of high conservation importance in the UK. This is due to the catastrophic population decline it had undergone over the last century (Warren 1999). According to Strachan (2011) the water vole is the fastest declining mammal species in Britain. Once common in Britain and often occurring in high densities, the species has disappeared from approximately 90% of previously occupied sites (Jefferies 2003). This long term decline has been attributed to the impacts of predation by American mink (Neovison vison) and changes in habitat (Strachan 2011).

1.2 American Mink During the 1920’s American mink were brought to Britain to be farmed for their fur. Many were released and populations established in the wild in the 1950’s (Rushton et al 2000). Barretto et al (1998) found a strong negative correlation between the decline of the water vole and the presence of American mink. Mink are opportunistic hunters, good swimmers and the female mink is small enough to enter a water voles burrow. These factors make them a great threat to the native water vole.

1.3 Habitat Degradation Water voles favour natural or rough semi-natural riparian vegetation. Since the 1940’s, land use changes, moving away from extensive agricultural practises have led to major changes in habitat