Stoat cull credited with rise in Orkney vole activity

The stoat eradication is being carried out by the Orkney Native Wildlife Project – a partnership between RSPB Scotland, NatureScot and Orkney Islands Council.

Stoats, which are native to mainland Britain but not to Orkney, were first found on the islands in 2010.

Conservationists have warned that stoats could devastate populations of wildlife including the Orkney voles, which are unique to the islands.

Individual stoat food stores containing about 100 Orkney voles have been discovered on the islands.

Since 2019 more than 8,500 stoats have been removed using humane lethal traps and Europe’s first stoat detection dogs.

The new monitoring report surveyed Orkney voles by looking for signs such as droppings and grass clippings.

Across 22 sites surveyed on the mainland and the islands, signs of voles were found in a third of the 1,082 small survey squares searched.

Monitoring also found autumn activity by the voles was high.