[You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]Its not just the larger animals we deal with at The Wildlife Aid Foundation, we also have the tricky task of caring for the smallest of British wildlife!
This tiny Harvest Mouse baby came in to us recently for hand rearing. These mice are the smallest UK rodent, and being a baby, she was even tinier! It really sums her up when you learn their Latin name - Micromys minutus! New born babies are actually the size of a raisin!
We had to use a tiny pipette and give her tiny drops of formula into her mouth. Luckily she is feeding well and her eyes have now opened, which means we can now start her on some solid food too!
In the wild she would eat nuts, seeds, small insects and fruit. Their lifespan in the wild is only about 6 months, but they can live up to 18 months if they are lucky and stay away from predators. Sadly, almost everything eats them; our domestic pets, birds of prey, foxes and even toads. They are not a house pest, and almost never venture into peoples homes, preferring peaceful hedgerows.
One more amazing fact about them is they have a prehensile tail that they use as a fifth limb to aid with climbing!
Mon Oct 22, 2012 12:47 pm
