The numerous order of rodents includes a small animal with an interesting name - hazel dormouse. The animal is found in almost all European countries except Spain.
Description
Outwardly, this small (its length is not more than 9 cm) rodent has a very great resemblance to a squirrel. In addition to its size, it differs from it by small rounded ears and a characteristic brush on the tip of the tail. The animal has a one-color reddish-buffy color. Against this background, convex dark eyes are clearly distinguished. The slightly blunted muzzle is covered with a small fluff. Very long mustaches with bent tips constantly move, feeling the surrounding space. They are especially well developed on the lateral part of the nose and can reach up to 40% of the total body length.
Sonya inhabit mainly mixed forests, where trees such as oak, linden, mountain ash, as well as rosehip bushes, hazel, euonymus and viburnum dominate.
Features
Hazel sleepyhead, the photo of which is posted in this article, like all representatives of this family, is a nocturnal animal, hibernating for the winter. In advance, he is looking for a cozy and warm mink, located most often in the hollow of an old rotted tree or underground. During hibernation, all vital processes in the animal slow down, and the body temperature drops so much that sometimes it is only one degree higher than the ambient temperature. All this helps to stretch 10-15 grams of fat accumulated in the fall for a long winter.
The signal for awakening is spring warming. But it happens that it is deceiving and is immediately replaced by cold. This phenomenon is very dangerous for Sonya, because energy consumption is increasing, and there is almost no fat left. In such unfavorable periods, up to 70% of animals die.
Hazel dormouse is a collective animal. A winter company usually hosts a whole company. This helps to keep warm, which means it increases the chances of survival.
Food
Favorite delicacies of this rodent are all kinds of nuts, acorns, rowan berries, viburnum, bird cherry, etc. The sleepyhead of hazel is especially weak, for which it was called hazel. She easily copes with a shell of nuts with the help of sharp front incisors.
In the diet of the animal there is exclusively plant food. This hazel dormouse, the description of which is given above, differs from other members of the family. In the spring she eats young shoots, leaves and buds of trees. In autumn, in addition to berries and nuts, the seeds of various plants are added to the menu.
A large amount of food absorbs this animal, preparing for hibernation. Its weight is almost doubled compared to the summer period. With the help of such reserves of fat, hazel dormouse safely survives the long winter months.
Breeding
In the spring, the mating season begins at Sonya. After fertilization, the female proceeds to the construction of the nest. It is usually located on the branches of a tree or bush at a height of at least 1-2 meters from the ground, sometimes in an old hollow. It happens that animals capture birdhouses or nests of small birds under their nest. The walls and bottom of a favorite place are lined with soft grass and leaves. After about 27-30 days, naked and blind cubs are born here.
Usually in their litter there are from three to five. Hazel dormouse feeds its babies with milk for one month. By the end of the third week, the eyes finally erupt in the cubs, they are covered with fluff and are already beginning to crawl out of the nest in search of food. After 40 days from the moment of birth, the animals begin an independent life, however, sony reach puberty only after the first year of life.
During the summer period, the female brings two offspring. A later litter remains for the winter in the nest with adults.
