Townsend's vole (Microtus townsendii) is a species of rodent in the family Cricetidae, the sister species of M. canicaudus. It is found in temperate grasslands of British Columbia in Canada and in the states of Washington and Oregon in the United States. Greek root words for "small ear" are the source for the genus name Microtus. American naturalist and writer John Kirk Townsend collected the type specimen in 1835, which accounts for the second part of the name.