Steve Deeley
Naturalist. Nature writer. Nature photographer

All Images shot in the wild

The Water Vole (The wrongly-named "Ratty" from Wind in the Willows) is not a rat, nor even a close relative. It's more like a miniature beaver. About the size of a Guinea-pig with two bright yellow incisors at the front of its mouth, the Water Vole is another animal slowly recovering from near-extinction, although it remains serious endangered as a result of predation by escaped Mink and being killed by people who think it is a rat. Water voles live in burrows in the backs of rivers and streams and though they can be seen at any time of the day, they are shy. You are most likely to hear them - they make a characteristic "plop" sound as they dive into water to escape.