Dormice spreading through Lincolnshire woodlands
16th April 2009
Reintroduced dormice colony expanding
April 2009. Wildlife experts are offering want-away `teenage' dormice a rest stop in Lincolnshire wood in a bid to help the creature expand its domain.
Scores of plastic tubes are to be installed in 360-hectare (900-acre) Chambers Farm Wood, east of Lincoln, to give the tree climbing mammal a place to bed down as it spreads into new areas of the Bardney Limewoods National Nature Reserve.
Reintroduced seven years ago
The species was re-introduced to the wood seven years ago after becoming extinct in the county in a pioneering project by the Forestry Commission, Mammals Trust UK, Natural England and Royal Holloway, University of London.
Nest box monitoring
Now from the original 32 captive-bred adults a new colony has established itself with babies being recorded every year by experts monitoring 180 nest boxes. Intrepid mice have also been found over one kilometre from the original release site. Anne Goodall, of Lincoln-based environmental consultants, ESL, who are keeping tabs on the population, explained:
Dormouuse tunnels are proving popular with the dormice. Credit Forestry Commission.
"The boxes are used by families, but the tubes give younger mice who want to stake out new territories a temporary home, away from predators like owls. Dormice spend up to three quarters of their life snoozing, so having a safe place to sleep is a big boost. We already have 40 tubes out in the wood, mainly erected in hedgerows, but we are going to increase this to keep up with demand. The tubes are only 30cms long and hardly the last word in luxury, but they have been so successful we are finding more mice using them than the boxes."
Hazel woodlands
The dormouse thrive in hazel woodland as the tree's nuts are a key part of its diet, along with honeysuckle. But the Chambers animals are doing things their own way. While some have stuck to this traditional habitat, others have moved into areas with conifer trees, which is very unusual, where bramble and blackthorn offer alternative tasty treats.
Wally Grice, from the Forestry Commission, added: "The reintroduction has gone well, but it's important we continue to do all we can to help the population expand. Chambers is a very good habitat for dormice, boosted by our traditional management of the wood, which includes coppicing trees like hazel, which produces more nuts. The fact that the mice have taken to their new home and are on the march is very encouraging."
Dormice are nocturnal and can be distinguished from other mouse-sized mammals by their thick, bushy tail. However, they are incredibly difficult to spot and spend a lot of time in the woodland canopy. They are protected by law and may not be killed, injured or disturbed in their nests. A loss of suitable habitat in Britain has led to a steep decline in their numbers.
April 2009. Wildlife experts are offering want-away `teenage' dormice a rest stop in Lincolnshire wood in a bid to help the creature expand its domain.
Scores of plastic tubes are to be installed in 360-hectare (900-acre) Chambers Farm Wood, east of Lincoln, to give the tree climbing mammal a place to bed down as it spreads into new areas of the Bardney Limewoods National Nature Reserve.
Reintroduced seven years ago
The species was re-introduced to the wood seven years ago after becoming extinct in the county in a pioneering project by the Forestry Commission, Mammals Trust UK, Natural England and Royal Holloway, University of London.
Nest box monitoring
Now from the original 32 captive-bred adults a new colony has established itself with babies being recorded every year by experts monitoring 180 nest boxes. Intrepid mice have also been found over one kilometre from the original release site. Anne Goodall, of Lincoln-based environmental consultants, ESL, who are keeping tabs on the population, explained:
Dormouuse tunnels are proving popular with the dormice. Credit Forestry Commission.
"The boxes are used by families, but the tubes give younger mice who want to stake out new territories a temporary home, away from predators like owls. Dormice spend up to three quarters of their life snoozing, so having a safe place to sleep is a big boost. We already have 40 tubes out in the wood, mainly erected in hedgerows, but we are going to increase this to keep up with demand. The tubes are only 30cms long and hardly the last word in luxury, but they have been so successful we are finding more mice using them than the boxes."
Hazel woodlands
The dormouse thrive in hazel woodland as the tree's nuts are a key part of its diet, along with honeysuckle. But the Chambers animals are doing things their own way. While some have stuck to this traditional habitat, others have moved into areas with conifer trees, which is very unusual, where bramble and blackthorn offer alternative tasty treats.
Wally Grice, from the Forestry Commission, added: "The reintroduction has gone well, but it's important we continue to do all we can to help the population expand. Chambers is a very good habitat for dormice, boosted by our traditional management of the wood, which includes coppicing trees like hazel, which produces more nuts. The fact that the mice have taken to their new home and are on the march is very encouraging."
Dormice are nocturnal and can be distinguished from other mouse-sized mammals by their thick, bushy tail. However, they are incredibly difficult to spot and spend a lot of time in the woodland canopy. They are protected by law and may not be killed, injured or disturbed in their nests. A loss of suitable habitat in Britain has led to a steep decline in their numbers.
