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Discover Nature: Voles Feed Under the Snow

Illustration: a prairie vole in a burrow between a layer of soil and snow stalks an insect in the layer of snow.
Prairie voles (M. ochrogaster) are found statewide. Like other voles, their populations have cycles of abundance and decline, peaking about once every four years. They are an important food for many predators.

This week on discover nature, voles (also called meadow mice) are busily working under snow and soil.

Voles, often confused with moles and shrews, are more mouse-like: small, stocky brown rodents with short tails, small ears, and a blunt, rounded snout.
Three species of voles call Missouri home: prairie voles and woodland voles reside statewide, while the meadow vole only inhabits the northern part of the state.
Voles build runway systems above- and belowground, and they construct nests of woven grasses and other materials.
They eat tender stems, leaves, roots, tubers, flowers, seeds, fruits, insects, and other small animals.
When food is scarce, voles eat the inner bark of trees, shrubs, and vines. They store food in chambers near the nest, and often aboveground, in hollow stumps and other hiding places. A single cache may hold two-gallons of tubers, roots, and small bulbs.
Voles can sometimes seem like a nuisance, but their burrowing works the soil – mixing-in their stores of food and waste products, helping soil health and plant growth. They’re also a major food source for many predators including foxes and owls.
Learn more about voles with the Missouri Department of Conservation’s online field guide.
Discover Nature is sponsored by the Missouri Department of Conservation.

Kyle Felling was born in the rugged northwest Missouri hamlet of St. Joseph (where the Pony Express began and Jesse James ended). Inspired from a young age by the spirit of the early settlers who used St. Joseph as an embarkation point in their journey westward, Kyle developed the heart of an explorer and yearned to leave for adventures of his own. Perhaps as a result of attending John Glenn elementary school, young Kyle dreamed of becoming an astronaut, but was disheartened when someone told him that astronauts had to be good at math. He also considered being a tow truck driver, and like the heroes of his favorite childhood television shows (The A-Team and The Incredible Hulk) he saw himself traveling the country, helping people in trouble and getting into wacky adventures. He still harbors that dream.
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