A Very Special Woodland Neighbour for Year 1

This week the Year 1 children have been learning about mammals, and investigating one very special species that lives in our Caterham woodland. Dormice have disappeared from much of the UK and are now found mainly in southern England and Wales, so the children were amazed to learn that they live right on our doorstep. They went on a hunt for signs of these elusive creatures, looking out for hazelnuts with smooth, circular holes in the shell, which have probably been nibbled by a dormouse!

These rare animals spend most of their time either asleep or high in the trees, so spotting one is very difficult. As the weather turns cooler, they move down to ground level and build a tightly woven nest about the size of a tennis ball. Inside, they curl up with their tails wrapped around their faces and bodies to keep warm.

Hazel dormice usually have a single litter of four to five young each summer. The babies are born pink, hairless and blind in a nest of grass and bark, usually among tree branches or in a hedge. They are covered in pale grey fur after around 12 days and can be seen after 18 days. They begin foraging with their mother at around three weeks old and leave the nest after six to eight weeks, although their fur stays grey until they are about a year old.

Their diet changes with the seasons. In autumn, they feast on nuts, seeds and berries to build up enough fat to survive the winter. After hibernation, they eat the blossoms of trees such as hawthorn and oak, adding insects like caterpillars when summer arrives.