Tundra vole facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Tundra vole |
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| Tundra vole in Alaska | |
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| Scientific classification | |
| Genus: |
Alexandromys
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| Species: |
oeconomus
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| Synonyms | |
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The tundra vole is a small rodent, also known as the root vole. You can find these voles in many cold places. They live across Northern Europe, Central Europe, and Asia. They also live in parts of northwestern North America, like Alaska and northwestern Canada. In the Netherlands, there's a special type of tundra vole. It's a leftover from the ice age and is called Alexandromys oeconomus arenicola.
Contents
What Does a Tundra Vole Look Like?
The tundra vole has small ears and a short tail. Its fur is a yellowish-brown color. The sides of its body are lighter, and its belly is white. A typical tundra vole is about 18 cm (7.1 in) long. Its tail is about 4 cm (1.6 in) long. These voles usually weigh around 50 grams (1.8 oz).
Where Do Tundra Voles Live?
Tundra voles like to live in wet, grassy areas. You can find them in damp tundra or moist meadows. They usually stay close to water sources.
How Do Tundra Voles Live and What Do They Eat?
These voles are busy all year round. In warmer weather, they make paths through the plants on the ground. When it snows, they dig tunnels under the snow. Tundra voles eat different kinds of plants. Their diet includes grasses, sedges, and seeds. They also dig burrows underground. In these burrows, they store food for winter. They especially like to store seeds and roots, like licorice root.
Tundra Vole Reproduction
Female voles have several litters of babies each year. They usually have three to six litters. Each litter can have three to nine young voles. The mother vole raises her young in a shallow burrow. The number of voles in an area can change a lot from one year to the next.
Types of Tundra Voles (Subspecies)
There are different types, or subspecies, of the tundra vole. These are slightly different groups within the same species. Some examples include:
- A. o. amakensis - the Amak Island tundra vole from Alaska, United States
- A. o. arenicola - the Dutch tundra vole from the Netherlands
- A. o. finmarchicus - a Norwegian tundra vole from Norway
- A. o. oeconomus - this is the most common type and is found in many places.
