Water voles are fully protected by UK law and can be found on-site near water courses. It is, therefore, essential that ecologists and conservationists know how to recognise the field signs of water voles, and how to survey for them. You should also have a good understanding of water vole ecology and law if you are likely to encounter them in your work.

In this course, we look at how to recognise signs of water voles and how to survey for them. We also look at the laws protecting them and their conservation needs.

This course is taught as a series of videos by an experienced Principal Ecologist from Ecology Training UK. It combines a virtual classroom session that will teach you about water vole ecology, identification, field signs and legislation. Then, we go outdoors on a virtual water vole survey to learn how to apply these skills in practice. By the end of the course you should have a good basic knowledge of water vole conservation, ecology and surveying, and the legal framework surrounding their protection.

The course will cover the following topics:

• Water vole biology and ecology
• How to identify water voles and their field signs
• The legal status of water voles
• Water vole conservation

What you get:

The course comprises 2 videos – one in the classroom and one out in the field, and handouts for the classroom part. At the end there will be a short quiz and if you get over 70% you will receive a Certificate.

Timings:

Study in your own time. Takes approximately 3-4 hours.

Here’s what our students are saying:

Great short course to gain knowledge about our rare little water rodent. If you’re looking to learn more about water voles I highly recommend this course.

Michael

It was very informative and easy to access and navigate.

Tim

The course is easy to follow and explained quite well especially helping individuals getting started in ecology

Jack

The course was enjoyable and informative. I found it particularly helpful in how flexible the study time was. You could do one module and then leave it a day or two when you had more time. It has also helped my career prospects.

Tim

It was very informative and easy to access and navigate.

Tim

Flexibility and easy to follow layout.

Michael

A career change in your 40’s its quite a daunting prospect, and even though I had completed lots of self study, small courses and training- I knew there were likely a few gaps in my knowledge, so doing a full structured course made good sense. Whilst some of the content was quite familiar, I was surprised by just how big some of the knowledge gaps were – it really boosted my confidence studying the modules and realising why they were so important. It is a great course that I would recommend to anyone wanting to qualify in Conservation, and has certainly helped me in my new career working as part of a landscape recovery project team

Bill Bradshaw

Depth of knowledge was excellent.

Alister

Sue searl was very knowledgeable and accommodating

Marley