Last observed 53 years ago on the University of B.C. endowment lands, the race was considered to be possibly extinct in the Lower Mainland. The Southern Red-backed vole is a forest mammal that has probably disappeared from most of the Lower Mainland with historical habitat changes. The Southern Red-backed voles were part of a sample of mammals captured by Mark Fraker and associates from TerraMar Environmental Research and sent to the RBCM for identification. Other rare mammals found in Burns Bog include the Pacific water shrew and Trewbridge's shrew, two shrews that also appear on the province's red or blue lists of endangered species. They are small rodents with chunky bodies, small eyes and short ears that feed on plant material and have teeth specialized for grinding up leaves, seeds and bark.
Voles are important food for raptors and carnivorous mammals such as weasels and skunks.
The Southern Red-backed vole has a body length of about 10 cm. The Royal British Columbia Museum. All rights reserved.