From Seedlings to Crowns: These Species Cover It All

Authors

Wendy M. Arjo, National Wildlife Research Center’s Olympia Field Station

Document Type

Article

Date of this Version

July 2003

Comments

Published by WESTERN FORESTER JULY/AUGUST 2003.

Abstract

Damage to trees in the Pacific Northwest ecosystems can occur at any point in a tree’s development. Of the three genera of voles, Microtus is the largest and most destructive to western forest ecosystems. Voles, like many small rodent species, have the ability to produce numerous litters in a single year and females are mature 30-40 days after they are born. Average litter size is three pups, and females can a produce a litter every 21 days. With this type of reproductive capability, it is easy to see why vole populations can rapidly expand in ideal habitats.