hibernation<\/a>\u00a0over winter.<\/p>\nThe tail is long and bushy, and slightly darker grey than the body.<\/p>\n
Why are edible dormice called edible?<\/h2>\n As the name suggests, this species has been eaten by humans \u2013 and they are still eaten in some countries, such as Slovenia and Croatia.<\/p>\n
In the days of Call My Bluff<\/em>, I can\u2019t remember the panel ever discussing gliraria, though they would have made a fascinating topic. These were stone jars in which the Romans used to keep edible dormice, fattening them up for the pot.<\/p>\nTwo millennia on, our attitude towards these bushy-tailed, button-eyed rodents is less culinary, and \u2013 as with so many introduced species \u2013 we are torn about whether they are a welcome addition to Britain\u2019s fauna.<\/p>\n
When were edible dormice introduced to the UK?<\/h2>\n Edible dormice were introduced to the UK in 1902 when the zoologist and banker Lord Rothschild liberated them on his estate at Tring in Hertfordshire. They rapidly colonised local woods, but dislike crossing fields so have largely stayed within 20\u201330km of Tring (there are isolated reports of the species from as far away as Essex).<\/p>\n
An edible dormouse in a nestbox in Siegerland, Germany. \u00a9 Burkhard Sauskojus\/ imageBROKER\/Getty<\/em><\/span><\/figcaption><\/div>\nAre edible dormice pests?<\/h2>\n In some places, the dormice have become a nuisance by inhabiting roof spaces: one resident said they are like having \u201ca football team in the loft\u201d.<\/p>\n
Although a non-native species, they do have some protections in the UK as the Gliridae family are protected internationally under the Berne Convention. They can only be removed by a qualified pest controller using spring traps, and must be humanely destroyed after capture.<\/p>
What do edible dormice eat?<\/h2>\n Until relatively recently, the population dynamics of edible dormice were little known, but a nestbox study by BBC Wildlife<\/em> contributor Pat Morris shed light on the rodents\u2019 life-cycle.<\/p>\nThe dormice depend on beech trees in Britain, eating the buds, flowers and (especially) mast, and the research has revealed that in poor mast years many dormice leave their nestboxes for a whole season and then fail to breed.<\/p>\n
Since edible dormice can live for nine years or more, this doesn\u2019t seem to affect their populations in the long term. But a lack of food in beechwoods could trigger an exodus into houses: there seems to be a correlation between failing beech crops and the number of pest-control call-outs.<\/p>\n
Edible dormice are known to be adaptable, and have been reported to eat berries, apples, invertebrates and even eggs.<\/p>\n
Main image: Edible dormouse in Buckinghamshire, UK. \u00a9 David Tipling\/Universal Images Group\/Getty<\/em><\/p><\/body><\/html>\nBy Brett Westwood Published: Friday, 24 June 2022 at 12:00 am Though attractive to look at, the European edible dormouse (normally referred to just as the edible dormouse) divides opinion in Britain \u2013 much like another grey, bushy-tailed interloper we could mention. It\u2019s not very closely related to the hazel dormouse, the only dormouse species […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":24,"featured_media":17771,"template":"","categories":[1],"acf":{"readingTimeMinutes":"3"},"uagb_featured_image_src":{"full":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/44\/2022\/06\/edible-dormouse-guide-how-to-identify-when-they-were-introduced-to-the-uk-and-what-protections-they-have.jpg",1024,827,false],"thumbnail":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/44\/2022\/06\/edible-dormouse-guide-how-to-identify-when-they-were-introduced-to-the-uk-and-what-protections-they-have-150x150.jpg",150,150,true],"medium":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/44\/2022\/06\/edible-dormouse-guide-how-to-identify-when-they-were-introduced-to-the-uk-and-what-protections-they-have-300x242.jpg",300,242,true],"medium_large":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/44\/2022\/06\/edible-dormouse-guide-how-to-identify-when-they-were-introduced-to-the-uk-and-what-protections-they-have-768x620.jpg",768,620,true],"large":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/44\/2022\/06\/edible-dormouse-guide-how-to-identify-when-they-were-introduced-to-the-uk-and-what-protections-they-have.jpg",800,646,false],"1536x1536":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/44\/2022\/06\/edible-dormouse-guide-how-to-identify-when-they-were-introduced-to-the-uk-and-what-protections-they-have.jpg",1024,827,false],"2048x2048":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/44\/2022\/06\/edible-dormouse-guide-how-to-identify-when-they-were-introduced-to-the-uk-and-what-protections-they-have.jpg",1024,827,false]},"uagb_author_info":{"display_name":"importmanagerhub@sprylab.com","author_link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcwildlife\/author\/importmanagerhubsprylab-com\/"},"uagb_comment_info":0,"uagb_excerpt":"By Brett Westwood Published: Friday, 24 June 2022 at 12:00 am Though attractive to look at, the European edible dormouse (normally referred to just as the edible dormouse) divides opinion in Britain \u2013 much like another grey, bushy-tailed interloper we could mention. It\u2019s not very closely related to the hazel dormouse, the only dormouse species…","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcwildlife\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/rss_feed\/17770"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcwildlife\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/rss_feed"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcwildlife\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/rss_feed"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcwildlife\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/24"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcwildlife\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/17771"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcwildlife\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=17770"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcwildlife\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=17770"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
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