364 MUSCARDINID^— MUSCARDINUS 



more or less of a surprise. The bird's-nester finds a round 

 structure, about three inches in diameter, resembling a wren's 

 nest, and on his touching it there rushes out a brightly coloured 

 mouse, which slips with amazing activity through the under- 

 wood, or finally disappears from view on the ground. The 

 intruder may, perhaps, have chanced to. find a colony of nests, 

 from each of which an inmate issues, and in the ensuing con- 

 fusion it is quite likely that the whole party will make good 

 their escape. On the other hand, if a single individual be 

 pursued, it is one of the easiest of wild animals to catch, since, 

 although extremely active, it has no certain retreat at hand, 

 and its conspicuous coloration is not a help to concealment. 

 When captured, it is inoffensive, and very rarely attempts to bite. 

 When several summer nests are found in association, they 

 are near, but not touching each other, and rarely contain more 

 than one inhabitant, so that the Dormouse may be described 

 as gregarious, but not entirely sociable. Many nests are 

 without opening of any kind, although with the wall thinner at 

 the top where the inmate is accustomed to pass in and out ; 

 others possess a distinct circular opening, especially when 

 empty, which opening is an unusual feature so far as British 

 mice are concerned. They are usually placed amongst 

 brambles or blackthorn, in hedges, or even in the tops of large 

 tufts of grass, ^ and not often at any considerable height from 

 the ground. But where some bird's nest can be utilised, the 

 general objection to height seems to be waived, whether for 

 purposes of sleeping, breeding, or hibernation, and in Sussex 

 Mr Cocks found a mouse occupying a nest, apparently of a 

 magpie, 20 feet up in a spruce fir. More frequently an old 

 nest of blackbird, thrush, or wood-pigeon forms a platform. 

 Holes in trees ^ are much appreciated when available, and 

 the artificial nesting-boxes of bird-lovers are often selected.' 

 At other times more lowly and unexpected situations are 

 selected; in June 1903 two nests were found* at Warn- 



1 J. Steele Elliott {MS.), who finds many within 2 feet of the ground. 



2 At East Grinstead, Sussex, a pair were dislodged from a woodpecker's hole j 

 F. H. Birley, Zoologist, 1887, 69, 



^ When these contain a nest from which young birds have flown, it is pulled to 

 pieces, and leaves and other materials are added (Meade-Waldo, MS.). 

 « J. G. Millais. 



