"The Watermeads island, mear Mitcham, has been chosen by the combination of London Wildlife Trust, The National Trust and the Environment agency to reintroduce the water vole and aid the future survival of the species. The program is hoping to bring back the animal in the river Waddle by 2009."

According to the article, over 900 metres of ditches have already been excavated designed to create a high quality habitat for the voles in the future, and should also help a wide range of other plants and animals. The ditches retain water, allowing the voles to escape predators.

Thanks to the website where I found this information. Sounds like an excellent project to me.

A very worthy cause. Do you have the website for the project? I would love to see if I could help out at all.

Yes, where is the link? I would like to take a closer look at this, too.

Kingfisher

I would be very interested in seeing how this project is going Riana. Do you know how long the ditches will eventually be? Because if 900 metres have been dug already, by 2009 there will be a considerable length. Or is the delay until 2009 to let the ditches (bed in" so to speak?

From what the news article says, I think that the water voles will not be released until 2009 due to more funding needed for things such as sluice gates and to allow weeds to grow. Here is a quote from the article.

An interesting point the article raises is that the water vole is the UK's fastest declining mammal, and that there is only 1 water vole alive for every 20 that would have been 80 years ago.

The site is at http://www.wildlondon.org.uk/news2.php?M...NewsID=156

It seems that this is another good example of some of the unintended side effects of introducing species where they did not exist before.

American mink, mostly escapees from fur farms, are extensive predators on the water voles.

Kingfisher

It does seem like that could have been a major factor in the voles decline, as well as losing their habitat through new towns being built.