Dormice are hard to find because they are small and nocturnal, so very few people are lucky enough to see them in the wild. The best way of finding out if dormice are using a wood or hedgerow is to look for hazel nut shells that they have opened to get at the nut inside.
Dormice open these nuts while they are still green and on the tree, but the shells turn brown once they are discarded and fall to the ground. Other animals like hazel nuts too, but even so it’s often possible to tell which animal has opened the nut. Birds and squirrels usually split the shells completely in half or smash them to pieces, but small rodents (mice, voles and dormice) gnaw a neat round hole and leave characteristic toothmarks around the edge. By searching for, collecting and examining nuts we can get an idea if dormice are present at a site.
The Sussex Mammal Group are running a Sussex Great Nut Hunt as part of the National Great Nut Hunt where they would like to re-visit sites which have had previous records of dormice. This is an important way of monitoring how well dormouse populations are doing and see if they are still present to help with future monitoring and site management. If you would like to join in then please register your interest on the Great Nut Hunt website who will send you an information pack and also with the Sussex Mammal Group [email] who will provide you with a list of woods to pick from.
Fancy getting involved with a bit of butterfly recording this summer?
Then you may be interested to hear about the Big Biodiversity Butterfly Count which is taking place between 4th and 12th July:
www.sussex-butterflies.org.uk/BBBC
Download the ID and recording form to record the butterflies you see between Saturday 4 July to Sunday 12 July at a location of your choosing. This could be your garden, school grounds, a local park, downland, woodland or any other suitable habitat. Try to give the maximum numbers of each butterfly seen.
Please send your completed form to the address on the form or enter your results at: www.sussex-butterflies.org.uk/BBBC
Do you live in Brighton?
Do you have two evenings free in August? Want to help out with a bat survey?
Ideally you will have a bat detector but if not, don’t worry, we can lend you one.
What’s the survey about?
- We are trying to find out more about bats in urban areas.
- We need surveyors to walk a survey route from their house and record the numbers of bats they hear. The survey itself takes about 45 minutes and needs to take place just before sunset.
- You don’t have to identify individual bat species.
There will be a short training session on Wed 22 July in the evening at the Booth Museum for anyone who wants to take part.
This survey is a repeat of one that took place in 2007 – all previous surveyors are welcome to take part again!
If you interested please send a message to Cath Laing containing:
- Your name
- Your address
- Your daytime and evening telephone number
- Do you already have a bat detector?
[ Email Cath ]