THE DORMOUSE 71 



No description has yet been given of the quarters 

 in which this species hibernates. At the first 

 chill touch of frost it deserts its aerial nest and 

 descends to some warm bank, retreating into a 

 hole, under a log, or into a crevice of some old 

 tree stump, where it makes itself a warm and 

 comfortable nest of leaves and grass. Sometimes 

 it will descend quite deep down a convenient 

 mouse hole or mole run, and I once saw a dormouse 

 dug up from a depth of between two and a half 

 and three feet. We were rabbiting in a wood, 

 and one of the ferrets having laid up with a rabbit 

 had to be dug out. The rabbit hole went quite 

 deep into the ground, and with one of the spade- 

 fuls of earth from the bottom of the trench came 

 up a ball of grass. As the soil was thrown out 

 it rolled away, and I picked it up to see what it 

 was. It was about the size of a tennis ball, 

 without visible opening, and beautifully woven. 

 On parting the materials, there was disclosed an 

 unconscious dormouse. I have seen it stated, 

 on good authority, that if a sleeping dormouse 

 is roused suddenly by being put near a fire, or 

 in any other way warmed up too quickly, its 

 heart begins to beat at such a rate it dies in a 

 few minutes, but I cannot vouch for it, as I never 

 had sufficient scientific enthusiasm to try such 

 an experiment. 



Apart from unsuitably mild seasons, animal 

 foes help to keep the dormice from increasing 

 unduly. The weasel is not above pursuing it 

 through the bushes, the tawny owl takes its toll, 



