Voles are small rodents often mistaken for house mice, but they are generally outdoor pests that damage lawns and gardens. Identifying the appearance and location of their droppings, or scat, is reliable evidence for confirming their presence. Learning the specific characteristics of vole scat helps distinguish it from the waste left by other small mammals.
Defining Characteristics of Vole Scat
Vole droppings are cylindrical with blunt or rounded ends, giving them a uniform, pellet-like shape. Scat from smaller vole species averages 4 to 8 millimeters in length, comparable to a grain of rice. Larger species, such as the water vole, produce scat measuring 7 to 12 millimeters long and 3 to 5 millimeters wide.
The color varies, reflecting the vole’s predominantly herbivorous diet of grass and vegetation. Fresh scat is often greenish, darkening to brown or gray as it dries. When fresh, the droppings may have a putty-like texture, which quickly hardens and becomes crumbly.
Contextual Clues for Vole Identification
Unlike the scattered droppings of some other rodents, vole scat is frequently concentrated in specific areas known as latrines. Voles use these latrines to mark their territory, often depositing the droppings in piles near the entrances of their shallow burrows or along their surface runways.
Runways are 1 to 2 inches wide paths of clipped grass that connect burrow openings; finding droppings within these trails is a strong indicator of activity. Since voles are herbivores, their scat is commonly found near feeding sites, often mixed with short pieces of clipped vegetation. The presence of these droppings in outdoor areas, such as lawns, gardens, or under dense ground cover, suggests a vole presence rather than a house mouse.
Differentiating Vole Droppings from Common Rodents
Distinguishing vole droppings from those of other small mammals requires observation of size, shape, and location. House mouse droppings are generally smaller (4 to 8 millimeters long), thinner, and have distinct pointed ends, resembling a dark grain of rice. House mouse droppings are usually found indoors, close to food sources or nesting areas.
Shrew Droppings
Shrew droppings are another common outdoor find, but they are typically smaller than vole scat, measuring 2 to 4 millimeters, and are frequently segmented or irregularly shaped. Shrew scat has a different composition due to their insectivorous diet, sometimes containing insect remains, and may have a musky odor. Water vole droppings are often described as being odorless, helping to distinguish them from the droppings of rats.