Microtus agrestis (Rodentia: Cricetidae)

Abstract

Microtus agrestis (Linnaeus, 1761) is a relatively small microtine rodent commonly called the field vole. It has a compact body, blunt oval head, short round ears that barely protrude from the fur, and a short, bicolored, rather stiff tail. It is easily confused with sympatric or parapatric Microtus arvalis, M. oeconomus, and M. levis (M. rossiaermeridonalis) with indistinguishable juveniles. There is geographical variation of size and coloration ranging across Europe south from the Pyrenees to the Arctic coast and Alps eastward to the River Yenisei and Lake Baikal in Asia up to elevations of 2,100 m. It prefers wet meadow areas, riverside habitats, and forests with dense herbaceous cover. M. agrestis is considered to represent a trace of a 1st radiation of the genus Microtus in Europe.