Species distribution

Central European tundra vole (Microtus oeconomus mehelyi) is a glacial relict of a subspecies Tundra vole (Microtus oeconomus). Tundra vole is a species with holarctic distribution – it is found in the area from northern Finland, eastern Germany, through Poland, Belarus, northern and central European part of Russia to the eastern Alaska (Fig 1.). Isolated relict populations were found in Netherlands, southern Scandinavia, Finnish coastal areas and in the western part of the Pannonian Basin (Fig 2.).

The European population consists of several subspecies: Microtus oeconomus ratticeps in the north of Russia; Microtus oeconomus medius in Scandinavia; Microtus oeconomus stimmingi from Germany through Poland to Russia; Microtus oeconomus finmorchicus in Norway and Vesterålen, Microtus oeconomus arenicola in Netherlands and Microtus oeconomus mehelyi in the western part of the Pannonian Basin.

The occurrence of the subspecies Microtus oeconomus mehelyi is restricted to localities around Neusiedler and Seewinkel lakes in Austria that are directly connected to Hungarian ones near Fertő lake. Another population lives in the nearby system of fragmented wetlands Hanság east of the lake. Isolated population is found around Lake Balaton; small populations live on Danube island Szigetköz. From there, the area of species distribution stretches to Slovakia, where the occurrence of root vole was recorded in the Danube Lowland, near Szigetköz as well as in a number of other wetland localities in the lowland. Isolated population was found in Parížske močiare marshes in the Hronská pahorkatina highlands, which represents the farthest eastern locality of root vole occurrence so far known.

Root vole´s habitats in Slovakia - project area: