Water Voles at Fowlmere

26th March 2026

The River Shep is a small chalkstream that rises from springs at the RSPB reserve at Fowlmere and then flows through Shepreth to join the River Rhee, also known as the River Cam, at Barrington. The river is maintained in an excellent condition and is home to Brown Trout as well as a thriving population of Water Voles. With the arrival of spring the voles are getting more active so time for a visit.

Water Voles can often be spotted as they swim across the water but at Fowlmere this can be difficult as they often swim under the cover of overhanging vegetation. Here are a couple that broke cover.

As well as their well-known habit of preparing latrines where they deposit their droppings they also prepare their own feeding stations. Here they collect 5-10cm lengths of vegetation such as reed shoots or Water Crowfoot and position them close to the burrow or even just inside the entrance to the burrow as seen here.

Or life is much easier if a tiny juvenile sits on a reed raft mid-stream and eats a Hawthorn berry.

And better still if an adult sits in the sun chewing on a reed shoot.

Don't you just love a Water Vole?