Latest Fauna of the Czech Republic Stories
Dr. Claudia Bieber from the Research Institute of Wildlife Ecology (FIWI) of the University of Veterinary Medicine, Vienna, and fellow scientists analysed a capture-recapture data set on common dormice (Muscardinus avellanarius) to investigate the life-history strategy of this species. These small rodents are about the size and weight of a wood mouse (Apodemus sylvaticus), but, unlike their rodent cousins, they hibernate – usually from late September/October to April/May. This is reflected...
Some of Ireland's oldest inhabitants are facing serious threat and possible extinction because of foreign species, according to researchers at Queen's University. The red squirrel, Irish hare and red deer are just some of Ireland's indigenous species which are under threat as a result of the introduction of foreign species. A new study which took place over the last two years looked at the impact of two introduced species – the bank vole and greater white toothed shrew – on two native...
Dave Tosh, from the School of Biological Sciences at Queens University, found the greater white-toothed shrew in Tipperary and Limerick while working with University College Cork and BirdWatch Ireland. Its natural range is in parts of Africa, France and Germany and before now the closest it has been spotted to Ireland is in the Channel Islands.As part of his PhD, Dave was studying the diet of the Barn Owl in Ireland. Last winter John Lusby, Barn Owl Research Officer from Bird Watch Ireland,...
Latest Fauna of the Czech Republic Reference Libraries
The Barbastelle (Barbastella barbastellus), also known as the Western Barbastelle, is a European bat. It has a short nose, small eyes and wide ears. It is rare throughout its range. In Britain, only three breeding roosts are known, including Paston Great Barn in Norfolk. The Barbastelle has two main call types used for echolocation. The frequency parameters of call type 1 lie between 30-38 kHz, have most energy at 33 kHz and have an average duration of 2.5 ms.[1] The frequency parameters...
Whiskered Bats (Myotis mystacinus), and related species, are small European bats with long fur. M. alcathoe is the smallest among the European whiskered bats and uses the highest-frequency echolocation calls of all the European Myotis species. It prefers to hunt in small valleys with deciduous trees and flowing water. Initial records from Greece and Hungary indicate a distribution range in south-eastern Europe. The analysis of morphological, behavioral and especially genetic characters...
The Harvest Mouse, Micromys minutus, is a small rodent native to Europe and Asia. They are typically found in fields of cereal crops such as wheat and oats. They are also found in long grass and hedgerows. They have reddish-brown fur with white under parts and a naked tail. The tail is highly prehensile (good at grasping). An adult has a head and body between 2 and 2.8 inches, with a similar length of tail. It weighs two to four ounces. This mouse eats chiefly seeds and insects but also...
The Common Pipistrelle, Pipistrellus Pipistrellus, is a species of small bat that ranges across most of Europe, North Africa, southwestern Asia, and into Korea. It is one of the most common species in the British Isles. Its brown fur is variable in tone. It is common in woodland and farmland but is also found in towns, where it roosts in lofts and buildings. The Common Pipistrelle is 1.4 to 1.8 inches long and has a wing span of 7.5 to 10 inches. This species was once considered the same...
The Eurasian Water Shrew, known in British English as the water shrew, is a relatively large shrew. It is up to 3.94 inches (100 mm) long, with a tail up to three-quarters as long again. It has short dark fur, often with a few white tufts. It has a few stiff hairs around the feet and tail that act as a keel in the water. Its fur traps bubbles of air in the water that greatly aids its buoyancy, but requires it to anchor itself if it wishes to remain underwater for more than the briefest of...
