European water vole
| European water vole | |
|---|---|
| Scientific classification | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Mammalia |
| Order: | Rodentia |
| Family: | Cricetidae |
| Subfamily: | Arvicolinae |
| Genus: | Arvicola |
| Species: | A. amphibius |
| Binomial name | |
| Arvicola amphibius | |
| Synonyms | |
|
Arvicola terrestris (Linnaeus, 1758) | |
The European water vole or northern water vole (Arvicola amphibius), is a semi-aquatic rodent. It is often informally called the water rat, though it only superficially resembles a true rat. Water voles have rounder noses than rats, deep brown fur, chubby faces and short fuzzy ears; unlike rats their tails, paws and ears are covered with hair.
In the wild, on average, water voles only live about five months. Maximum longevity in captivity is two and a half years.
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