LANCASTER residents have backed plans to help save an endangered mammal which once flourished along the banks of the River Lune.

The sad plight of the water vole - immortalised as "Ratty" in Kenneth Grahame's Wind in the Willows - has been highlighted in a new survey which reveals a shocking 90 per cent drop in their numbers over the last seven years.

North Lancashire Friends of the Earth has enlisted the support of MP Hilton Dawson and hundreds of local people to lobby the Government to include the water vole in its new Countryside Bill.

The population crash means that the water vole could become extinct by the end of the decade, unless action is taken immediately. The Countryside Bill will greatly increase the protection available for Sites of Special Scientific Interest (or SSSIs), and it has been warmly welcomed by conservation groups, including Friends of the Earth.

But currently it offers little hope to the many species that live outside wildlife havens, such as the dormouse and the water vole. Cen Kaighin of North Lancs Friends of the Earth, explained: "Other countries have wildlife laws to help save endangered species. But here in the UK, our precious wildlife has to rely on goodwill of local councils and

wildlife trusts.

The Government's new Countryside Bill is very welcome but there are opportunities for improvements. Hilton Dawson MP is joining his name with the people from Lancaster who have already signed this poster petition, calling on the Environment Minister, Michael Meacher to amend the Bill so that it also protects species that live outside our best wildlife sites."

He added: "We want to live in a country where the water vole and other vulnerable species can still be seen and enjoyed by everybody."