Garden dormouse
Encyclopedia
The garden dormouse is a rodent
in the dormouse
family.
, but its range extends into the north. Garden dormice are often found in the Alps
, in the Bavarian Forest
, and in the Ore Mountains.
The species is also present in northern Germany, but the population there is apparently not capable of large-scale reproduction. Nearby, in the Netherlands
, it is nearly extinct: in 2007 researchers reported finding only nine animals in two woods in the province of Limburg
, where it used to be common. They suggested this is a result of the landscape becoming increasingly monotonous and due to climate change, which they said interrupts hibernation.
Garden dormice are primarily nocturnal, sleeping in spherical nests in trees during the day. At night they look for food, mainly eating larger insects like grasshopper
s and beetle
s, snail
s, eggs, young nestlings, small mice
, and spider
s, as well as berries
, fruit
, and nut
s like acorn
s and beech
nuts. While omnivorous
, the diet of dormice contains slightly more animal protein than vegetation.
The mating period lasts from April to June. During this time, the female indicates her readiness to mate by squeaking loudly. The young are usually born in litters of three to seven, after a gestation
period of 23 days. Blind and naked at birth, they open their eyes after about eighteen days, and are nursed until they are one month old. They become independent at two months of age, but do not reach sexual maturity until the next year. They have a life expectancy of about five years.
It is not unusual for a garden dormouse to eat one of its unfortunate rivals during the mating season. Cannibalism is also observed occasionally when the animal is coming out of hibernation.
there are several subspecies of garden dormouse, all of which are very rare. These are the Sardinian garden dormouse (E. q. sardus), the Sicilian garden dormouse (E. q. dichrurus) and the Liparian garden dormouse (E. q. liparensis). The populations of western Asia and north Africa, on the other hand, have recently been separated into their own species Eliomys melanurus.
Rodent
Rodentia is an order of mammals also known as rodents, characterised by two continuously growing incisors in the upper and lower jaws which must be kept short by gnawing....
in the dormouse
Dormouse
Dormice are rodents of the family Gliridae. Dormice are mostly found in Europe, although some live in Africa and Asia. They are particularly known for their long periods of hibernation...
family.
Features
Garden dormice are typically 10 centimetre in length, with the tail adding an additional 8 centimetre. They weigh 60 gram. The coat is gray or brown, with a white underside. The garden dormouse can be recognized by black eye markings, relatively large ears, short hair, and a white tassel at the end of the tail.Range and habitat
In spite of its name, the garden dormouse's main habitat is the forest, though it can also be found in fruit-growing regions. It is particularly common in southern EuropeEurope
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
, but its range extends into the north. Garden dormice are often found in the Alps
Alps
The Alps is one of the great mountain range systems of Europe, stretching from Austria and Slovenia in the east through Italy, Switzerland, Liechtenstein and Germany to France in the west....
, in the Bavarian Forest
Bavarian Forest
thumb|The village of Zell in the Bavarian ForestThe Bavarian Forest is a wooded low-mountain region in Bavaria, Germany. It extends along the Czech border and is continued on the Czech side by the Šumava . Geographically the Bavarian Forest and Bohemian Forest are sections of the same mountain range...
, and in the Ore Mountains.
The species is also present in northern Germany, but the population there is apparently not capable of large-scale reproduction. Nearby, in the Netherlands
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
, it is nearly extinct: in 2007 researchers reported finding only nine animals in two woods in the province of Limburg
Limburg (Netherlands)
Limburg is the southernmost of the twelve provinces of the Netherlands. It is located in the southeastern part of the country and bordered by the province of Gelderland to the north, Germany to the east, Belgium to the south and part of the west, andthe Dutch province of North Brabant partly to...
, where it used to be common. They suggested this is a result of the landscape becoming increasingly monotonous and due to climate change, which they said interrupts hibernation.
Way of life
Grasshopper
The grasshopper is an insect of the suborder Caelifera in the order Orthoptera. To distinguish it from bush crickets or katydids, it is sometimes referred to as the short-horned grasshopper...
s and beetle
Beetle
Coleoptera is an order of insects commonly called beetles. The word "coleoptera" is from the Greek , koleos, "sheath"; and , pteron, "wing", thus "sheathed wing". Coleoptera contains more species than any other order, constituting almost 25% of all known life-forms...
s, snail
Snail
Snail is a common name applied to most of the members of the molluscan class Gastropoda that have coiled shells in the adult stage. When the word is used in its most general sense, it includes sea snails, land snails and freshwater snails. The word snail without any qualifier is however more often...
s, eggs, young nestlings, small mice
Mouse
A mouse is a small mammal belonging to the order of rodents. The best known mouse species is the common house mouse . It is also a popular pet. In some places, certain kinds of field mice are also common. This rodent is eaten by large birds such as hawks and eagles...
, and spider
Spider
Spiders are air-breathing arthropods that have eight legs, and chelicerae with fangs that inject venom. They are the largest order of arachnids and rank seventh in total species diversity among all other groups of organisms...
s, as well as berries
Berry
The botanical definition of a berry is a fleshy fruit produced from a single ovary. Grapes are an example. The berry is the most common type of fleshy fruit in which the entire ovary wall ripens into an edible pericarp. They may have one or more carpels with a thin covering and fleshy interiors....
, fruit
Fruit
In broad terms, a fruit is a structure of a plant that contains its seeds.The term has different meanings dependent on context. In non-technical usage, such as food preparation, fruit normally means the fleshy seed-associated structures of certain plants that are sweet and edible in the raw state,...
, and nut
Nut (fruit)
A nut is a hard-shelled fruit of some plants having an indehiscent seed. While a wide variety of dried seeds and fruits are called nuts in English, only a certain number of them are considered by biologists to be true nuts...
s like acorn
Acorn
The acorn, or oak nut, is the nut of the oaks and their close relatives . It usually contains a single seed , enclosed in a tough, leathery shell, and borne in a cup-shaped cupule. Acorns vary from 1–6 cm long and 0.8–4 cm broad...
s and beech
Beech
Beech is a genus of ten species of deciduous trees in the family Fagaceae, native to temperate Europe, Asia and North America.-Habit:...
nuts. While omnivorous
Omnivore
Omnivores are species that eat both plants and animals as their primary food source...
, the diet of dormice contains slightly more animal protein than vegetation.
The mating period lasts from April to June. During this time, the female indicates her readiness to mate by squeaking loudly. The young are usually born in litters of three to seven, after a gestation
Gestation
Gestation is the carrying of an embryo or fetus inside a female viviparous animal. Mammals during pregnancy can have one or more gestations at the same time ....
period of 23 days. Blind and naked at birth, they open their eyes after about eighteen days, and are nursed until they are one month old. They become independent at two months of age, but do not reach sexual maturity until the next year. They have a life expectancy of about five years.
It is not unusual for a garden dormouse to eat one of its unfortunate rivals during the mating season. Cannibalism is also observed occasionally when the animal is coming out of hibernation.
Classification
On the islands of the Mediterranean SeaMediterranean Sea
The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean surrounded by the Mediterranean region and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Anatolia and Europe, on the south by North Africa, and on the east by the Levant...
there are several subspecies of garden dormouse, all of which are very rare. These are the Sardinian garden dormouse (E. q. sardus), the Sicilian garden dormouse (E. q. dichrurus) and the Liparian garden dormouse (E. q. liparensis). The populations of western Asia and north Africa, on the other hand, have recently been separated into their own species Eliomys melanurus.