Thursday, 17 February 2011

Wood Mice in my garden.............nice to see them

Wood Mouse (Apodemus sylvaticus)


I often see Wood Mice in my garden and they are a beautiful little animal to see.
It is Britain's most common and widespread mouse.
A very energenic animal it is usually only active at night. For the last few months I have not seen one in my garden and I thought the very severe winter we have had may have caught them out.
The Wood Mouse does not hibernate but can go into a similar inactive (torpid) state in order to conserve energy. This morning as I was getting ready for work I glimpsed movement under the bird feeders. My little garden rodent had survived the winter. Wood Mice live in burrows underground (mine live under my garden shed) and I enjoy watching them foraging under my bird feeders.

A Note:
The problem mouse in the UK is the House Mouse (Mus musculus).
It is a species that arrived from Asia and is classified as a pest.
This is the mouse that causes damage to property by gnawing cables, skirting boards and ruining food supplies with droppings and urine. It can also carry disease and parasites.
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8 comments:

  1. Dave18 February 2011 at 00:19

    He reminds me of the little guy that visits our basement and steals cat food.
    Lucky for him our cat isn't the brightest bulb and just likes to lick him clean.

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  2. grammie g18 February 2011 at 02:57

    Hi Andrew ...oooh they are so cute!! I love there ear's
    I just wish they didn't get in my house and leave poop's in my kitchen draws...: }}
    They do like cat food to ; } like Dave said!! lol

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  3. Unknown18 February 2011 at 03:08

    Great images of mice. They are definitely adorable. Thanks for your kind words on my blog!

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  4. Hilke Breder18 February 2011 at 10:50

    I agree they look cute, particularly outside in a natural surrounding. I have caught a few in my house - yes, they hide in kitchen drawers like Grammie says. They are certainly much more appealing than the common gray house mouse.

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  5. Unknown18 February 2011 at 15:39

    Good close ups Andrew. Boom & Gary of the Vermilon River, Canada.

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  6. Beatrice P. Boyd18 February 2011 at 16:17

    Cute little guys, Andrew. In the past we have had some of their relatives come into our kitchen through the ductwork and sadly they did not survive to tell others; glad yours are outside and hope they stay there - best place for survival.

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  7. ShySongbird18 February 2011 at 16:50

    So sweet! Lovely photos of them Andrew, I particularly like the first one.

    I have a mouse visit a small mesh feeder which I pushed into a Clematis to attract the smaller birds, it was some time before I realised I was feeding a Yellow-necked Mouse!

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  8. Unknown19 February 2011 at 19:44

    They are so cute! Lovely visitors.

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