Let me introduce you to Rodney. Rodney is a pygmy shrew and as such he belongs to the smallest mammalian species in The British Isles. When fully grown, a pygmy shrew will measure around two inches in length - excluding the tail which is about 1.4 inches in length.
The life of a healthy pygmy shrew is quite short - on average fifteen months or so. In that time, a normal female may successfully bear five litters - containing two to eight young.
Rodney eats seeds and small insects and lives in a burrow under an old tree stump. The burrow was created by another rodent a couple of years ago. Rodney's sleeping habits are different from our own. He will be busily active for twenty minutes and then asleep for the next twenty minutes. This pattern continues throughout the day. He has a very high metabolic rate.
Though not as common as the common shrew which is significantly bigger, pygmy shrews are believed to be quite widespread in The British Isles though they have never been spotted in either The Shetland Isles or The Scilly Isles. It should be noted that accurate assessment of pygmy shrew populations are very hard to make and summaries are often based upon assumptions and mathematical extrapolations.
In my life I have seen wild elephants, white rhinos, black bears, hoary marmots, snakes, fruit bats and killer whales but I have never seen a pygmy shrew. They may often be very close but so tiny and so well-concealed that nearby humans just don't spot them.
Though the pygmy shrew is the smallest mammal in Britain, the smallest known mammal in the world is about half the size of the pygmy shrew. It is the bumblebee bat which is also known as the Kitti's Hog-Nosed Bat. Weighing in at 0.07 ounces the tiny species can be found in the borderland territory between Thailand and Burma.
Well, jeez. I saw the title "Rodney" and at first thought Frances had delivered a baby boy! Haha.
ReplyDeleteI sincerely hope that she does not deliver a pygmy shrew.
DeleteI thought that was your finger holding wee Rodney until the end. How disappointing. I think you need to go on a pygmy shrew hunt.
ReplyDeleteLike a safari? Will I need to ride in a very small jeep?
DeleteI have seen shrews here but I'm not sure if they were pygmy shrews. They were very tiny.
ReplyDeleteEven Britain's common shrew is very small.
DeleteI have heard of the Taming of the Shrew and shrewish fishwives, but did not know about these tiny critters. And that bumblebee bat! So tiny. They belong in Fairyland. I can't imagine having five litters in fifteen months, it's bad enough cats can have more than one litter per year. The poor mama shrews must get so worn out.
ReplyDeleteShrews live each day as if it's their last. Mama shrews are shrewd... regularly!
DeleteWait, did you actually manage to photograph a shrew who lives in your garden?
ReplyDeleteNo! My fingers are not that fat. Ever heard of Google?
Delete"never seen a pygmy shrew" Then how do you know he is called Rodney? Did the badger tell you?
ReplyDeleteI used poetic licence for which I make no apology you villainous varlet!
DeleteYou mean he might not be called Rodney at all? You have spoilt my day.
DeleteThat's right. His real name might be Brian.
DeleteThe taming of the pygmy shrew perhaps?
ReplyDeleteYou would need to locate a human pygmy for that purpose. Perhaps Rishi Sunak?
DeleteThe shrew is ever so cute. The bat, not so much. I need to think about this twenty minutes of activity and twenty minutes of rest. It is sounding tempting.
ReplyDeleteR might say that you are already following the pygmy vole's lead.
DeleteSuch a cute little critter.
ReplyDeleteAre you talking about me?
DeleteWe had a tiny shrew in our old house one winter. Each evening he used to dart from the door, along the skirting board to the curtains and then back again. Too quick to catch. One day P found his little body, cold and still. As you say, they have a very short lifespan.
ReplyDeleteI hope you gave the deceased vole a proper, Christian burial.
DeleteI'll hold the shrew, but pass on the bat.
ReplyDelete"Pass on the bat". I guess that's what you used to do in baseball games at high school.
DeleteThanks for sharing the Pygmy Shrew, an adorable little creature, as are all screws in fact, driven by their metabolism to spend most of their lives eating. Come to think of it, I know a couple of humans like that!
ReplyDeleteThanks for calling by again David.
DeleteWhy are tiny things so darn cute?
ReplyDeleteThat's what Melania used to say to Donald in the bedroom.
DeleteWhat made you think about a pygmy shrew, Neil?
ReplyDeleteI saw Mike Johnson on TV.
DeleteAnd Happy Halloween to you too! 👻🎃🦇
ReplyDeleteHow can one have a "happy" night of demons, witches and ghouls? I would have thought that such a night would have been decidedly unhappy!
DeleteI look at the bat and the shrew and try to imagine what their babies look like - especially if a shrew can have litters of up to eight little ones! (And in their case, "little ones" REALLY means little.)
ReplyDeleteDuring one of the many summers I spent on Sicily, one day a bat flew into our bedroom and didn't manage to find the way out, in spite of the large french windows being wide open. I very carefully caught it and took it outside to freedom. The moments I held it on my hand are unforgettable. Not as tiny as a bumblebee bat, but small enough to fit entirely into the palm of my hand, wings folded. It was as cute as any small mammal with furry face, pointed ears, black eyes and pink snout - not unlike a somewhat strange-looking tiny cat.
What a wonderful memory.
DeleteI like both of the creatures, the bat looks so sweet clinging to the elegant hand .
ReplyDeleteI wouldn't like that tiny bat to bite me. Lord knows what diseases it might be carrying.
DeleteOh, I thought Rodney was living under YOUR tree stump! He is awfully cute. (As is the bat.)
ReplyDeleteImagine what their little babes are like and how much milk they suck.
Delete