Orkney vole
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| Orkney vole (Microtus arvalis orcadensis) in the Natural History Museum at Tring | |
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Microtus orcadensis | |
The Orkney vole is a population of the common vole (Microtus arvalis) found in the Orkney Islands, off the northern coast of Scotland, United Kingdom. Orkney voles are larger than voles from other populations of the common vole.[citation needed] The common vole does not occur elsewhere in the British Isles.
The Orkney vole occurs on five islands:
In the past the populations on each of these islands have been named as subspecies, and the Orkney vole as a whole is considered by some taxonomists to be a subspecies of the common vole because of its size difference from the common vole. However, others do not recognise any subspecies of the common vole, [1] especially since dna analysis indicates transport by Neolithic humans from Belgium to support a local fox fur industry.[2][3]
Orkney voles do not occur in mainland Britain, nor elsewhere in the British Isles, and they are thought to have been introduced to the Orkney archipelago by humans in Neolithic times. The oldest known radiocarbon-dated fossil of Common Vole in Orkney is 4,600 years old: this marks the latest possible date of introduction. The likely source areas for Orkney voles are what is now France or Spain.[4]
References
- ^ a b Wilson, D. E.; Reeder, D. M., eds. (2005). Mammal Species of the World: A Taxonomic and Geographic Reference (3rd ed.). Johns Hopkins University Press. ISBN 978-0-8018-8221-0. OCLC 62265494.
- ^ Orkney vole is from Belgium
- ^ Orkney Fox in Neolithic era
- ^ S. Haynes, M. Jaarola & J. B. Searle (2003). "Phylogeography of the common vole (Microtus arvalis) with particular emphasis on the colonization of the Orkney archipelago" (abstract page). Molecular Ecology. 12 (4): 951–956. doi:10.1046/j.1365-294X.2003.01795.x. PMID 12753214.
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