It looks a bit like a gerbil but lives up in the tops of trees, spends most of the day sleeping and at the moment is merrily stuffing its face on all sorts of nuts, berries and insects to prepare for hibernation throughout the winter. Better known for its appearance at the Mad Hatter’s tea party in Lewis Carroll’s Alice in Wonderland, the dormouse is one of our rarest woodland mammals and as such is the focus for the final survey taster session being run by Denbighshire Countryside Service.
Every year, countryside service staff, ecologists and volunteers monitor a variety of declining wildlife species to find out where they occur and in what numbers in order to help protect them. Kate Taylor, Biodiversity Officer for Denbighshire County Council said, ‘We are always in need of volunteers to help do this and it can be an incredibly rewarding sight to see some of these spectacular animals in their native habitats. It also means we can direct conservation effort to where it is most needed.’
The idea of the sessions are to be informal and relaxed, allowing participants to get a feel for the species and basic surveying techniques which can then be taken further through joining in on monitoring sessions or through formal training if interested.
There have been 8 sessions in total concentrating on different declining species and at different locations throughout the county. This last session, run in partnership with the North Wales Wildlife Trust, is being held on Tuesday 6 October at Clawdd Newydd village hall, starting at 10am. It will start with a short talk on dormouse ecology and identification followed by a walk through a nearby woodland having a go at an actual survey.
The session is free, but places must be booked in advance. To find out more and to book a place contact Kate on 01824 708234 or at [email protected].
