Dormice
,_Skole,_Lviv_Oblast,_Ukraine_(48236079657).jpg)
Image courtesy of Wikimedia Commons
At the end of June the People’s Trust for Endangered Species (PTES) released 38 hazel dormice in Derbyshire and Cambridgeshire, to increase the population. The Common Dormouse Captive Breeders Group breeds and cares for dormice. Before they are released they are quarantined for six weeks, at zoos in Paignton and London, and given a thorough health check before being taken to woodland to be set free. Some of the recently liberated dormice are now pregnant.
Hazel or Common dormice (Muscardinus avellanarius) are a protected species and the only dormouse native to the UK. They are increasingly rare small rodents, with golden-brown fur and large black eyes. At 6 to 9 cms, with a furry tail of similar length, they spend most of their time high in the tree canopy and are very difficult to spot in the wild. They live mostly in deciduous woodland in the south of England with a few isolated populations in the Midlands, Wales and the Lake District.
They are active between April and October and when ready to hibernate they abandon the trees to create a nest on the ground, often in the shelter of a well-established hedgerow. The nest is constructed from closely woven grasses, leaves and finely-shredded bark and is about the size of a tennis ball. The dormouse curls up in the nest, tail wrapped around body and nose, to sleep for around six months.
Image courtesy of Wikimedia Commons
The hazel dormouse is in serious decline, its numbers having fallen by 52% since 1995. The decrease is attributed to the loss of ancient woodland and hedgerows across the UK. Dormice will not leave the security of trees to cross large open spaces, thus populations become isolated, inbred and more liable to extinction. In spring, dormice eat oak and hawthorn flowers and emerging insects but milder winters mean that they awaken earlier from hibernation, before adequate food is available for them.
One derivation of the name dormouse is the Anglo-Norman ‘dormius’, which means ‘sleepy one’.
Edible dormice are not native to the UK. We have Lord Rothschild to thank for their introduction. I wrote about them, in passing, here.
They are the cutest little creatures and what a long hibernation. As you probably know, they are not the only hibernating animal species to wake too early for any food to be available. Nothing to do with climate change, of course. Btw, your link at the bottom goes to search for your previous post rather than the post itself you intended to link to. I've done that myself.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the heads-up, Andrew. I've corrected the link now.
DeleteI think Dormice are the cutest of all mice and we don't have them here in Australia.
ReplyDeleteThey are beautiful little creatures.
DeleteThey do indeed looks really very cute indeed. xx
ReplyDeleteWe don't know what's in the trees above our heads! x x x
ReplyDeleteYou may remember how I feel about mice and these ones are especially adorable so thank you for writing about them! I wonder if domestic cats are a threat to them during hibernation, as they are on the ground for such a long period of time.
ReplyDeleteI imagine they are extremely vulnerable to all sorts of predators - a tasty morsel!
DeleteLovely! And good to see one of my local zoos doing its bit! Paignton Zoo is a lovely zoo and they do some great work there.
ReplyDeleteThat's good to know.
DeleteHow adorable they are! They are called "relmuis" or "slaapmuis" (transl. sleepmouse) in Dutch, and we are supposed to have them here in Belgium as well. I've never ever come across one though, possibly they were asleep :-) xxx
ReplyDeleteI like 'slaapmuis' - such an appropriate name.
DeleteWhat great photos to showcase this tiny mouse. I do regret that human interference has sent so many animals into decline. Our brown deer mouse carries the deer ticks and therefore the Lymes disease.. However, I do not hold that against the tiny things.
ReplyDeleteIt is sad to see so many creatures facing extinction.
ReplyDelete