Pamela's first observations on voles appeared in issue 41,
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My earlier piece on watching bank voles (White Admiral 41), reported 'Our vole had a visitor a few days ago....'. Not for the last time, I may add! I think our vole had at least five sets of triplets while she was with us. There were times when the garden seemed full of bank voles and, fortunately, it was a good year for french beans, as the crop had to be shared! Things seemed to follow the same pattern each time. One youngster, smaller than the other two, stayed with its mother a day or so longer, and we witnessed more than one game of hunt-the-bread.
I also reported how the vole had turned and sized me up. I must have made a favourable impression because our relationship developed as the weeks passed. After serving her meals and knocking on the azalea trough to let her know the food was there, I retreated a shorter distance each day until I was able to remain directly level with her 'table' on top of the trough. 
Eventually, I was able to sit down beside the trough, which brought me nose to nose with the voles. They would eat and play only cms away from me. The vole was well aware of my presence and her bright little black eyes would make eye contact with me. On one occasion she was some eight metres from the trough, near the gate. As I passed through it she dashed across my path and, far from making a panic dash for cover, she galloped alongside me to reach her 'table' the same time as myself.
I wondered if we were good enough 'friends' for her to eat from my fingers. I held a strip of crust, about five or six cms long, towards her. She grabbed the end and tugged at the food, looking up at me, well aware of what I was up to. I released the food after a few seconds and she made off with her snack. I hoped that, with patience, I might manage to stroke the vole but I was not able to put this to the test. I fear she had a visitor who harboured a very different motive from that of her usual caller. Our vole disappeared and we concluded that the weasel had once again included our garden in his rounds. We have not seen a bank vole since that fatal autumn night but I remember with affection one little bank vole and feel privileged to have enjoyed her trust for those few months.
Pamela Oldroyd
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