Water vole
habitat creation for water vole: supervision of bank re-profiling following trapping and translocation s
Water Vole habitat is protected under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 as a result of the species catastrophic recent decline.
Our team have considerable experience surveying and designing mitigation strategies for water vole, and have worked on a number of large-scale schemes where measures have included trapping and translocation for captive breeding and reintroduction, plus large-scale habitat creation.
Survey is normally carried out between April and September and this seasonal constraint means that the species should be considered at an early stage.
Development affecting water vole habitat is not licensable, but to avoid committing an offence, reasonable steps must be taken to minimise damage to water vole habitat or, ideally, avoid it altogether by sensitive scheme design. Where damage is unavoidable, mitigation is likely to include 'exclusion' of water voles from the working area, plus habitat creation and restoration. Trapping and translocation of water voles is normally considered as a last resort.