04 June 2024

On Tuesday 11 June, we will conduct our first water vole release of the year as we reintroduce around 100 at a site near Stithians in south Cornwall.

Funded through Rewilding Europe’s European Wildlife Comeback Fund, this release will bolster and link the two previously released water vole populations in the River Kennall and Upper Cober catchment areas.

Once common in all of Britain’s waterways, water voles have been missing in the area from the 1990s until we began releasing them in 2022. Water voles are some of the UK’s most endangered mammals; habitat loss and fragmentation, combined with over-predation by invasive non-native species (American mink) pushed them to the brink of extinction in the UK by the end of the last century.

Now, through carefully planned reintroduction projects such as this, and ongoing monitoring for mink, the water vole is making a comeback.

Water voles play a vital role in the ecology of the riverbank, grazing on around 227 plant species and around 80% of their body weight daily increases plant diversity, while the voles themselves provide an important link in the food chain.

Kernow Conservation founder and project leader, David Carrier said, “We are delighted to be going ahead with our first release for 2024. This latest batch of water voles to the area will join together the populations from two of our previous releases and enable them to thrive in the region for many years to come.”

Notes to editors:

Kernow Conservation CIC is a nonprofit community interest company based in south Cornwall, working with landowners and funding partners to restore nature and increase biodiversity. Kernow Conservation directors David Carrier and Joe Marshall are available for quote or interview with op-eds available on request regarding all ongoing projects.

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