[pbs] Voles Eat Bulbs, Who Eats Voles?
Judy Glattstein
jglatt at hughes.net
Mon Dec 18 12:50:41 EST 2006
As a prey species, voles have a high reproductive rate coupled with a
brief life span. They breed early and often.
My cat doesn't eat them - just leaves them on the deck as a "thank you"
for the food that magically appears in his food bowl.
I've seen a red fox in the winter snow pause, head tilted and ears
pricked forward, then two-foot pounce into the snow. Muzzle into the
snow, head toss sending stunned vole into the air. Single gulp, and
stroll continued into the woods.
I've heard coyotes, not seen them. Voles, I'm sure, are part of their
diet. Ditto for the very infrequent black bear that comes around, across
the river from Pennsylvania.
We have red-tail hawks. They hunt well in summer, but if there is snow
the hawks cannot find the voles in winter. Owls hunt at night, take mice
that scuttle around in the dark. But voles, I believe, a creatures of
the daylight.
Snakes hunt in summer, sleep in winter.
Anything that's this popular on the predator menu needs to keep their
numbers up. Just wish they'd dine on something other than bulbs, roots
of hosta, Hakonechloa, rose bushes, and more.
Judy in semi-rural New Jersey.
More information about the pbs
mailing list