andyelcomb Posted September 21, 2012 Report Share Posted September 21, 2012 Found this little feller in the porch last evening. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andyelcomb Posted September 21, 2012 Author Report Share Posted September 21, 2012 Could feel its hearbeat - was going like the clappers! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rich Posted September 21, 2012 Report Share Posted September 21, 2012 Is it a mole? How did it get in the porch? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andyelcomb Posted September 21, 2012 Author Report Share Posted September 21, 2012 No, it's a shrew. See them a lot in my garden, mainly dead, having been played with by SC the cat. Oddly she doesn't seem to like eating them so they are always intact - unlike the mice, rats and rabbits that she despatches. Think this is a young one as they grow to twice that size, just short of mouse size. edit: looks like a pygmy shrew judging by the pics on Google. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rich Posted September 21, 2012 Report Share Posted September 21, 2012 What was I thinking, it looks nothing like a mole! Never seen one of those before. I take it they don't bite then, not at that size anyway? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andyelcomb Posted September 21, 2012 Author Report Share Posted September 21, 2012 I think they can bite as they are carnivorous, but don't expect i was in much danger... http://www.uksafari.com/pygmyshrews.htm Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sagitar Posted September 21, 2012 Report Share Posted September 21, 2012 That's nice. It looks like a common shrew. It's not a rodent, but related to the moles. The heart rate is always high, because they have a very high metabolism and they eat about 80% of their own body weight each day. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
liner33 Posted September 21, 2012 Report Share Posted September 21, 2012 I see a lot of dead ones near me , great little things I heard recently that heart rate is largely dependant in body size in mammals so the larger the creature the slower their heart rate but amazingly all mammal hearts have around the same number of total beats Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Freaky Roadster Posted September 22, 2012 Report Share Posted September 22, 2012 Put it down very very carefully and step away very very quietly. They are one of the most vicious animals in the UK and you are so lucky that it hasn't stripped your hand down to the bone Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Freaky Roadster Posted September 22, 2012 Report Share Posted September 22, 2012 Sorry, got that mixed up with the piranha. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vipercar93 Posted September 22, 2012 Report Share Posted September 22, 2012 lol Such a cutie =) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tony Posted September 24, 2012 Report Share Posted September 24, 2012 Pikey pup would mug that in a second..... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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