Vole Page Header

Voles

  • Scientific Name: Microtus
  • Nicknames: Meadow Mouse or Field Mouse
  • Length: Varies
  • Color: Brown, Black
  • Aggressive? If Threatened Yes
  • Do They Bite? Yes
  • Poisonous/Venomous? No
  • Disease Carrying? Can Be
  • Invasive Species? No

The Vole

Voles are small, mouse-like rodents though they commonly are called meadow mice or field mice, they are distinguished from true mice by their short tails (about one inch long), stocky build and small eyes.

Voles can cause problems by damaging lawns, gardens, tree plantings and other plants.

Voles are small, weighing one to two ounces as adults. Their overall adult body length varies from three to five and one-half inches in the pine vole, to about four and one-half to seven inches in the meadow and prairie voles.

Voles are an important food source for many predators, including snakes, hawks, owls, coyotes, weasels, foxes, mink and badgers. Mortality rates for voles are very high. Life expectancy in the wild often does not exceed two months, and few ever live longer than 16 months. Not surprisingly, voles are very prolific animals.

The breeding season for all voles encompasses most of the year although peaks occur in spring and fall. Prairie and meadow voles normally have five to 10 litters per year and average three to five young per litter.

Probably the most extensive and costly damage caused by voles occurs to woody plants in winter. At times voles severely damage or kill many young trees and shrubs, including orchard, windbreak and landscape plantings. Voles will eat the green inner bark layer of trees and shrubs when preferred foods are unavailable.

Living Spaces

Meadows, Flower Beds, etc

Diet Choices

Lawns, flowers, tree saplings, etc

Fun Fact

Voles are an important food source for birds of prey, snakes, and other animals.

How Do We Remove Them?

One of the pest management experts at McMahon Exterminating will visit your home and provide a proper assessment and ID the bugs that are infesting your home or property to better understand the type of insects or pests that they are dealing with to properly coordinate a plan that will work best for you.

We help educate the customer on things that they might be able to do to help deter the pests as well, and will try to prevent this from becoming a reocurring infestation.

The treatment will begin and we will monitor the situtaion closely to make sure that the numbers are being depleted in the area. We want to try to deter the insects from coming to your area as opposed to just chemically treating them, as that will only be a short term solution for you but with McMahon's C.A.N. initiative and our three easy steps — Canvas the area, Act on those results, and Negate re-entry for the pest, we can work to getting your home to pest free status.