Prøve GULL - Gratis

Of mice and men

Country Life UK

|

August 17, 2022

Our mice, voles and shrews lead their lives mainly out of sight, yet they are incredibly abundant in almost every kind of habitat, with even the field vole alone outnumbering human beings, says Marianne Taylor

- Marianne Taylor

Of mice and men

IT starts with a rustle or a squeak in the I undergrowth. As you pivot your gaze downwards, you might (if you are lucky) catch a split-second glimpse of a tiny, tawny-furred something rocketing past your foot. A mouse... or was it a vole, or perhaps a shrew?

Mice (family Muridae) and voles (subfamily Arvicolinae) belong to Rodentia, the largest and most diverse grouping of mammals on earth. All rodents have incredibly durable front teeth (incisors) that grow continuously and are used to gnaw hard foods. These are speedy, skittish little animals-not surprising, as they are prey to so many others. They themselves eat mainly plant matter and deploy those formidable teeth to chew through the shells of the toughest nuts.

Shrews (family Soricidae) are very different to mice and voles-in fact, we and our primate kin are closer relatives to rodents than shrews are. Shrews belong to the group Eulipotyphla, which means, charmingly, 'the truly fat and blind'. Shrews are neither fat nor blind, but the description is a closer fit for some other species in the group, such as moles. Eulipotyphlids have pointed teeth, for grabbing and incapacitating living prey. Shrews are, indeed, ferocious and voracious little hunters, eating their own weight in insects and other invertebrates every day. They are forthrightly fearless, so focused on the mission of sniffing out their next meal that they will run straight across a human hand placed in their path.

FLERE HISTORIER FRA Country Life UK

Country Life UK

Country Life UK

Dogged work uncovers Rembrandt secret

ALTHOUGH history doesn't record how passionate Rembrandt van Rijn was about dogs, he clearly liked them enough to feature them in several of his paintings, such as his Self-portrait in Oriental Attire with Poodle (1631-33).

time to read

1 min

October 08, 2025

Country Life UK

Country Life UK

The royal treatment

Edward VII swept away the cobwebs of mid-Victorian style, Queen Mary had passion for all things small and the Queen Mother bought rather avant-garde art. In a forthcoming talk, Tim Knox, director of the Royal Collection, charts a century of regal taste

time to read

3 mins

October 08, 2025

Country Life UK

Country Life UK

The garden for all seasons

The private Worcestershire garden of John Massey

time to read

5 mins

October 08, 2025

Country Life UK

When in Rome

For anyone considering tweaking pasta alla carbonara-a work of art as fine as the Trevi Fountain-the answer is always: non c'è modo! Or is it, asks Tom Parker Bowles

time to read

3 mins

October 08, 2025

Country Life UK

The scoop

\"The planned article was on the damson harvest; instead, we got Donald Trump's ally's taps turned off\"

time to read

3 mins

October 08, 2025

Country Life UK

Country Life UK

The goddess of small things

For Rita Konig, interior design isn't only about coherence and comfort: it should be a celebration of stuff. Giles Kime charts her transatlantic career

time to read

4 mins

October 08, 2025

Country Life UK

Country Life UK

Farmers vent fury at Labour's conference

THE Labour party's controversial proposed reforms of farm inheritance tax were the catalyst that led 1,200 disgruntled British farmers to converge on Liverpool and stage a protest at the Labour Party Conference.

time to read

2 mins

October 08, 2025

Country Life UK

Country Life UK

Vested interest

Favoured by Byronic bluesmen, Eton pops and rotund royalty, the waistcoat and its later iterations are an integral part of the Englishman's wardrobe, says Simon Mills

time to read

5 mins

October 08, 2025

Country Life UK

Country Life UK

The easel in the crown

Together with ancient armour, Egyptian cats and illuminated manuscripts, this year's Frieze Masters sees a colourful work by an even more colourful character, a Nigerian prince who set out to make 'contemporary Yoruba traditional art'

time to read

5 mins

October 08, 2025

Country Life UK

Country Life UK

Everything you need to know about trees and shrubs

SOMETIMES, it is difficult to remember how we functioned before the internet took over the way we garden.

time to read

3 mins

October 08, 2025

Translate

Share

-
+

Change font size