 | 27 November 2009 Accessibility help Text only |
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Nature FeaturesYou are in: Essex > Nature > Nature Features > Water voles  Water voles need to be protected by law Water volesWater vole numbers have declined greatly for several reasons, and now thanks to a grant from Essex County Council's Aggregates Levy Fund, surveying is taking place in areas of the county not checked for many years. Water voles are severely threatened in Essex. In the county we are at a tipping point - we could lose them completely or bring them back from the brink. The Essex Wildlife Trust's new Water for Wildlife Officer, Darren Tansley is part of the surveying team. They are experiencing problems carrying out the survey work as the water levels are so high. This is also causing problems for the voles. The problem with survey work along watercourses is that you're looking for very small signs a lot of the time and they can get washed away very easily. When the water levels are up, a lot of the burrows are submerged so you can't see them. Some of the survey work is now being pushed back to later in the year. BBC Essex's Renee Hockley-Byam joined Wildlife Officer Darren Tansley, beside Kirby Brook in Holland Haven Country Park, and he explained what his new role encompasses. Help playing audio/video Iif you'd like to volunteer for training, you can contact Darren at the Wildlife Trust HQ on 01621 862960. last updated: 29/04/2009 at 14:46 SEE ALSOYou are in: Essex > Nature > Nature Features > Water voles 
 
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