Dr Tom Moorhouse

Position: Postdoctoral Researcher

Thesis: Factors affecting the success of translocation and reintroduction as tools for the conservation of water voles (Arvicola terrestris)

Description of research:
Re-introduction, habitat restoration and mink control are potentially very valuable for restoring water voles to Britain. This project builds on 10 years of research on water vole conservation at the WildCRU. It is unique in being the only project studying the success of many simultaneous re-introductions into different habitats. The work involves i) practical restoration of water voles to the countryside, and ii) an experiment testing our understanding of water voles’ ecology, from which we will derive nationally applicable guidelines for water vole conservation.

 Over three years we are re-introducing water voles to 14 replicated study sites in the Upper Thames. Forty water voles (20 males, 20 females) are re-introduced to each site in May and the populations monitored using capture-mark-recapture techniques in each month thereafter throughout the field season. Half of the release sites contain large amounts of vegetation (which acts as both food and shelter for water voles) per metre length of water course, and half smaller quantities. This experimental design will allow us to determine how levels of food abundance and cover influence individual survival, body condition, breeding success and the rates at which released water voles colonise the surrounding habitat. We are also examining the health and welfare implications of these reintroductions (see details under Merryl Gelling’s personal page) as part of the same study.

This research is expected to directly, and positively contribute to the conservation status of water voles in the UK. Guidelines derived from the results of this research will inform future water vole re-introduction attempts.

 

tom.moorhouse@zoo.ox.ac.uk

Recent publications

Moorhouse, T.P., Gelling, M., McLaren, G.W., Mian, R. Macdonald, D.W. (accepted for publication) Physiological consequences of captive conditions in water voles (Arvicola terrestris). Journal of Zoology.

 Moorhouse, T.P. & Macdonald, D.W. (2005) Indirect negative impacts of radio-collaring: sex ratio variation in water voles. Journal of Applied Ecology, 42: 91-98.

 Moorhouse, T.P. & Macdonald, D.W. (2005) Temporal patterns of range-use in water voles: do females' territories drift? Journal of Mammalogy, 84: 655-661.

 Moorhouse, T.P. (2003) Reintroducing Ratty. New Scientist 180 (2416): 51-51.

 Strachan, R.S. & Moorhouse, T.P. (in press) The  Water Vole Conservation Handbook, second edition. Wildlife Conservation Research Unit & The Environment Agency.

 Strachan, R., Moorhouse, T. & Macdonald, D.W. (2003) Enhancing habitat for riparian mammals on agricultural land. In Tattershall, F. & Manly, W. (eds.) Conservation and conflict. Mammals and farming in Britain, pp 52-63. Linnean Society of London.

 Macdonald, D.W., Moorhouse, T.P. & Enck, J.W. (2002) The ecological context: a species population perspective. In Perrow, M.R. & Davy, A.J. (eds.) Handbook of Ecological Restoration. Volume 1: Principles of Restoration, pp 47-65. Cambridge University Press.