The project is funded from two sources, Peak District National Park and Severn Trent. It was created to address an issue that is of great concern: water voles are recorded as the fastest declining mammal in Britain today (watervole.org.uk). They were once very common in England and were a key species of our waterways, playing a significant role in watercourse food webs and biodiversity of the habitats. Water voles are known to be significant in their contribution to biodiversity, with many species benefitting from their activities, e.g. helping to provide niche habitats and food sources for invertebrates such as bees and butterflies through their lifestyle habits and ‘gardening’ work.  Also as a consequence, many insect-eating birds and bats benefit from their activities (Jo Cartmell, 2016, How to Save the Water Vole: A Neighbourly Guide - NearbyWild).

Their declining numbers are indicative of the predicament that a great deal of wildlife are experiencing, such as habitat loss and imbalances in predator-prey situations, often involving introduced species such as the American mink. Water voles are a protected species in England and Wales under section 9 of Schedule 5 of the Wildlife & Countryside Act 1981 (as amended), being added to the list in 2008.

Working on the project has provided many opportunities to become much more involved in the local communities and I have been delighted to have the opportunity to work with local people and to learn in greater detail of the ways in which the watercourses and associated land is utilized. A great deal of help has come from some people with inherent and deep connections to the land and rivers – the River Bailiffs and members of the fishing clubs have such great knowledge of the watercourses and vast array wildlife. I have also been helped by many of the land owners, farmers & community groups, all providing their insights into the land. Many can draw from their own history in the area to share stories of wildlife – both common and rare and I thank all for allowing me to survey on their land and watercourses and for their valuable knowledge.

In early summer this year we were fortunate to have the help of ‘conservation dogs’ or ‘water vole detector dogs’ as they are fondly referred to. These dogs are trained in a similar manner to airport sniffer dogs, with the focus in this case being on water voles and any signs of their presence including burrows, feeding signs and of course poop. The two dogs that came along, were a Labrador called Monty and a Springer Spaniel called Pip.

The use of dogs is an increasing method of surveying. They are so helpful, particularly in situations where access is difficult for us humans. With their tuned in sense of smell they can quickly cover larger areas and they thoroughly enjoy their work. Monty took the lead in surveying as he has long experience in detector work and Pip who is relatively new to her role, was his enthusiastic back-up for when he needed a rest or to allow her to gain valuable experience too. The dogs are trained to sniff and search for water voles and if they find any evidence they freeze and ‘point’ with their nose to the source of evidence. They carry out their work without any harm to water voles of any other wildlife and are great work mates have in the team!

Both dogs were busy on a range of survey sites, from the Brabourne and Bentley brooks near to Tissington; to the Henmore in the meadows upstream of Ashbourne; the River Dove and the Mill Stream at Okeover, Mappleton and Birdsgrove; the shores and streams around Carsington Water and Dayfield Brook near Atlow.

The dogs are in the capable and caring hands of their owner – Emily of Imprint Ecology ( Imprint Ecology | Ecological Consultancy & Wildlife Detection Dogs | Chichester ). Emily has worked on many water vole projects and alongside her role with Imprint Ecology she also takes the lead role for water voles in The People’s Trust for Endangered Species (PTES - People's Trust for Endangered Species (PTES)).

Unfortunately, the survey to date has not found any confirmed sightings of water voles and not enough evidence in any one place to confirm any populations in the study area. However, if anyone knows of any water voles in the catchment area (between Carsington Water & Ashbourne/Mayfield on the Henmore & Dove and from Tissington/Brabourne to Ashbourne on the Bentley Brook) we would love to hear about them. Likewise, we would be interested to hear of any sightings of American mink in the areas too. Contact us via enquiries@derbyshirewt.co.uk.

The project continues until the end of the year, by which time we will have gathered information to inform the potential for next stages of the project. Re-introductions of water voles have taken place in many parts of the country, however, if existing populations can be found and encouraged to grow and spread then that would likely produce the best result. The main factor to enable this is to ensure the habitats are suitable for them to inhabit. Mink monitoring is also a key factor along with suitable enhancements to river and brook habitats.

For me, the main aspect that has enabled this project to progress successfully to this stage has been  through the growing network of people who are willing to help. I am truly grateful for this and hope to continue to work together to bring about a positive result for wildlife in the catchments and hopefully before too long we should all enjoy hearing the little splash as a water vole drops into the water, returning to our beautiful part of Derbyshire. Much like Ratty in the beautiful children’s story – Wind in the Willows (Kenneth Grahame 1908) these busy and cute little voles may be regular sites again, happily going about their business and helping to provide diverse riverside biodiversity.