Endangered water voles return to Somerset river after 30 years

Endangered water voles are being reintroduced to a stretch of river in Somerset where they have not been seen for more than 30 years.

The National Trust conservation project aims to boost wildlife on the Holnicote Estate in Exmoor.

It is thought about 94% of the UK's vole population has disappeared, the victims of changes in farming practices, the loss of wetlands and the American mink, which was a ferocious predator.

The water vole reintroduction is part of the trust's new Riverlands project.

11 September 2018