Natural England works for people, places and nature to

conserve and enhance biodiversity, landscapes and wildlife

in rural, urban, coastal and marine areas. We conserve and

enhance the natural environment for its intrinsic value, the

wellbeing and enjoyment of people, and the economic

prosperity it brings.

www.naturalengland.org.uk

© Natural England 2007

ISBN 978-1-84754-010-2

Catalogue code NE24

Written by The Mammal Society and Mammals Trust UK

Designed by RR Donnelley

Front cover image: The hedgehog should be welcome in every garden.Dave and Brian Bevan

Mammals in your garden

www.naturalengland.org.uk

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Far more people are now gardeningwith wildlife in mind, and mammalvisitors are often seen as a real bonus.

Almost all gardens, including those inthe heart of any city, will receive atleast occasional visits from somemammals. The closer you live to placeswhere mammals are often found –woodland, a park, a railway line orpiece of rough ground – the greater thelikelihood of a variety of mammalvisitors. But wherever you are, andwhatever the size of your garden, witha little work and patience you shouldbe rewarded with sightings of at leastsome of our native mammals.

Most species of British mammal arenocturnal or crepuscular (active at duskand dawn) and many visitors, especiallythe smaller ones, will go unseen.However, they will often leave signsthat they have been present, such asthe remains of their prey, marks in theground, hairs or droppings.

In 1998/9, a survey of mammals in thegarden was carried out by The MammalSociety and the People’s Trust forEndangered Species. This showed thatthe most common garden visitors thatpeople were aware of were mice, grey

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squirrels, hedgehogs, foxes and bats.However, shrews and voles are oftenpresent and several other species canalso make an appearance. Somegardens, even in urban areas, arevisited by badgers and deer; andweasels and stoats – together with therather less welcome rabbits, moles andrats – may also be seen.

This leaflet will help you find out moreabout the mammals coming to yourgarden. It offers some tips aboutmaking your garden more appealing formammals and suggests what you cando to deter undesirable visitors, or atleast to control the damage theysometimes cause.

Is it a mouse?

The small mammals that you are mostlikely to find in your garden fall intothree broad categories: shrews, volesand mice. Shrews are classified asinsectivores (together with hedgehogsand moles) while voles and mice arerodents.

Slugs are among the many creatures eaten by thecommon shrew. Dave and Brian Bevan

Short-tailed field vole at entrance hole to nest.Dave and Brian Bevan

Mammals in your garden

The hedgehog – one of the most commonvisitors to our gardens. Dave and Brian Bevan

Mammals and the law

Of the mammals likely to visitgardens, badgers, the hazeldormouse and all species of bathave full legal protection. Thismeans they may not be caught,disturbed or killed without a licenceand that their roosting and breedingplaces may not be interfered with.The burrows of water voles are alsofully protected, as are the animalsthemselves when they are insidethem. Contact Natural England formore details (see Contacts, page 29).

The pygmy shrew is only about 6 cm long andweighs less than 4 g. Derek Middleton/Avico Ltd

Bank vole. Dave and Brian Bevan

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The tiny animals with long pointednoses often left dead by cats areshrews. These eat invertebrates such asworms, snails, woodlice and spiders.Shrews taste unpleasant to manypredators and often remain uneaten –although owls are undeterred!

Both the common shrew and thesmaller pygmy shrew like densevegetation through which they make‘runways’. Their nests are made ofwoven grass. To stay alive, both speciesneed to keep feeding virtually all thetime, with only brief periods of rest.

Mouse-sized mammals with bluntnoses and short tails are voles. Theytend to be more active in the daytimeand prefer long grass and unkempt

areas. Bank voles are far more likely tobe seen in your garden, but short-tailedfield voles will turn up in rural areas.The reddish-furred bank voles eatherbage and berries but will also takeinsects. Short-tailed field voles aregenerally tawny in colour and mostlyeat grass.

Water voles are occasional gardenvisitors in some areas but are rarelyfound far from canals or streams. Sadly,these voles are now far less commoneverywhere, the decline in theirnumbers being mainly due to habitatloss and predation by American mink.

Not all mice found indoors are housemice. In more open suburbs and ruralareas, wood mice and yellow-necked

mice may also move into a house,especially in the autumn. All threespecies eat seeds by preference andthus have a liking for cereals, oftenspoiling food as a result.

You can catch mice in a humane trap– these are available from many petshops – but ensure you check itregularly. Release captured animals acouple of kilometres away or they willreturn. However, mice ‘dumped’ inthe countryside like this will probablydie fairly quickly so it may be kinderto use an old-fashioned snap trap. Analternative is an ultrasonic deterrentto keep mice out of the housealtogether. However, these devicesare rather expensive and theirefficiency is not fully proven.

True mice, either brown (such as woodmice and yellow-necked mice) or grey(the house mouse), have pointed noses,long hairless tails and large ears andeyes.

The house mouse is quick to track down any food spillages! Dave and Brian Bevan

The rare water vole. Paul Keene/Avico Ltd

The yellow-necked mouse closely resembles the wood mouse but is larger. Dave and Brian Bevan

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More rarely seen is the tiny, red-brownharvest mouse which occasionallyturns up in rural gardens. Its tail is itsmost distinctive feature as it can beused as a fifth limb to hold on to grassor small twigs. As is the case with somemonkeys, this prehensile tail enablesharvest mice to move rapidly throughvegetation. Harvest mice make roundnests suspended in clumps of grass atabout knee height.

Hazel dormice

A furry tail and golden coat distinguishthe tiny hazel dormouse from truemice. More like a small squirrel than amouse, the dormouse has large earsand prominent eyes. These attractive

animals are found mainly in the south,the south-west and the west midlandswith isolated populations elsewhere,especially where they have been re-introduced. They may turn up in gardenhedges and are sometimes attractedinto gardens to feed on nuts and seedsfrom bird feeders. Dormice have beenknown to hibernate in pampas grassand even garden sheds!

Lewis Carroll’s portrayal of thedormouse in Alice’s Adventures inWonderland was fairly apt. Dormicehave a long hibernation period, lastingfrom October to April, and, even in theiractive season, sleep extremely deeplyduring the daytime in a state known astorpor. They eat a variety of foods,concentrating on flowers in the spring,invertebrates in the early summer andfruit and nuts later in the year.

Hedgehogs

The hedgehog is our only spinymammal species, the spines beingmodified hairs. Gardens with a lot ofcover offer them ideal homes and theirfinger-sized black droppings,containing glistening beetle parts, mayoften be seen scattered on the lawn.Hedgehogs are very useful animals tohave around as they consume largequantities of snails and slugs. They willalso take a variety of other foodsincluding insects, fruit, worms andeven birds’ eggs.

The hours immediately before midnightsee most hedgehog activity. They can

be surprisingly noisy when feeding andeven more so when courting! Theyoung – generally four or five in a litter– are born in a nest of grass, leaves andmoss.

Hedgehogs can move quite quickly, atup to 40 metres a minute (just undertwo miles per hour) when the needarises, making use of their surprisinglylong legs. This is not fast enough,however, to allow them to escape fromtheir major predators, foxes andbadgers. Foxes mainly kill younghedgehogs in their nests whereasbadgers take adults. This may beupsetting but it is, after all, part of thenatural cycle and there is no realreason to interfere with it. You can,however, provide hedgehogs with fox-and badger-proof nesting sites madeThe harvest mouse was first described by the famous eighteenth century naturalist, Gilbert White.

Dave and Brian Bevan

Hazel dormice may take advantage of bird bathsand feeders. Betty McKay

Gardeners with weapons: another danger tohedgehogs. Dave and Brian Bevan

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with bricks or stout timber and with along entrance tunnel. For furtherinformation, contact the People’s Trustfor Endangered Species. (See Contacts,page 29).

Hedgehog-friendly gardeners will leaveat least some autumn leaves in quietcorners where the animals may forage,shelter or even hibernate. Besidesponds and bonfires (see pages 22 – 23)the main dangers to hedgehogs ingardens come from netting andstrimmers. All these hazards can begreatly reduced by taking a few basicprecautions. Hedgehogs can easilybecome trapped in garden netting sopeg down edges tightly and remove itwhen it is no longer needed. When

using strimmers, disturb the targetareas with your feet beforehand toensure that any hedgehogs shelteringin the long grass or shrubby edgeswake up and move out of harm’s way.This is extremely important ascarelessly-used strimmers can inflicthideous, often fatal, wounds onhedgehogs.

Rats

Brown rats have large eyes and ears andlong scaly tails. They dig or gnaw holesand leave hard, black, cylindricaldroppings. They are often attracted tofood that has fallen from bird tables orbeen thrown on to compost heaps and,since they emerge during the daytime,

they are more likely to be seen in thegarden than other rodents. In contrastto the brown rat, the black rat or shiprat is now a rarity, almost exclusivelyconfined to a few ports.

Putting out bird food can attract rats.This problem can be avoided by usingspecialist, hopper-type, hangingfeeders or a bird table that keeps thefood out of their reach. If you feedbirds on the ground, try to gauge theamount that they will take in a day andrestrict your offerings to that quantity.

If you find rats living in your compostheap, keep them out with fine chickenmesh and a strong lid. Removepotential hiding places such as oldbuckets and flower pots. If rats becomea problem, contact the pest controldepartment of your local authority.

Bats

Growing warmth from the sun wakesbats from hibernation in March orApril. In many gardens, they can thenbe seen at dusk – and occasionallyeven in daytime – right through toOctober or even later. Their dietconsists entirely of insects which theydetect by echo-location, usually inflight. The sound waves issued throughtheir mouths or noses help them tonavigate, as well as to find food.

Britain has 17 species of bat. Many ofthese have been recorded in gardensand several species may roost inhouses, the most likely being

pipistrelles and the brown long-earedbat. Bats normally remain hiddenduring the day and their small, blackdroppings in your roof space oftenprovide the only evidence of theirpresence. Mice droppings are hard butthose of bats consist of insect skeletonsand crumble to dust if rubbed betweenfinger and thumb. All bat species andtheir roosts are protected by lawbecause they are so vulnerable. Britishbats are quite harmless to humans andshould not be disturbed. If you aredoing work on your roof and find bats,contact your nearest Natural EnglandBrown rats appreciate any food left overnight on bird tables. Dave and Brian Bevan

The three species of pipistrelle in Britain aredistinguishable by their calls but only by expertsusing specialised equipment. Dave and Brian Bevan

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office for advice (see Contacts, page 29).For more information, refer to theNatural England booklet, Focus on bats.

Moles

These interesting creatures spendvirtually all their lives underground.Although they rarely live permanentlyin gardens without large lawns ororchards, they can be found in gardenson the edge of built-up areas where theenriched soil offers visiting moles aplentiful source of earthworms, theirmain food. This is particularly true ofgardens near grassland or woodland,especially in the summer when theyoung are searching for new territories.

A mole digs its tunnels mainly to createa giant underground trap forinvertebrates. The familiar molehillsappear when they dig new tunnels toextend their ‘trap’ or search for molesof the opposite sex. You can kill molesusing traps but the use of strychnine isnow illegal.

Ultrasonic deterrents do not scaremoles away and neither does the noisemade by the wind blowing over the topof a bottle sunk into a mole tunnel – acommonly cited homespun deterrent!The live-trapping and removal of molesis also unlikely to be effective as othermoles will probably move into the emptytunnels and may even extend them.

It is better to live with the problem andremove molehills as they appear,generally in the autumn and winter

when it is damp and easy to dig. Whynot use the soil for potting plants?Leaving moles undisturbed means thatthey are less likely to dig new tunnels.Moles can actually benefit the gardenby eating harmful insect larvae likeleatherjackets and helping to drain andaerate heavy soils.

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Moles use their hugely powerful front legs likeshovels. Dave and Brian Bevan

New molehills are often dug by young animalsestablishing territory. Dave and Brian Bevan

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Stoats and weasels

These predators are probably morefrequent visitors to gardens, especiallyin rural areas, than most peoplesuppose. Often they come in search ofprey like voles, moles, rats or mice butthey may also take fish or frogs fromponds. They can be active in daytimebut are rarely seen, preferring generallyto stay in the cover of long grass orthick hedges.

Both stoats and weasels are small, longand lithe. Each species has a gingery-brown coat and a cream or white belly.The larger stoat, which takes manyrabbits – especially young ones – has avery distinctive black tail tip. Bothspecies climb well and stoatssometimes scale creeping plants likeivy to raid birds’ nests in the roofspaces of houses. They may then take

up residence and even breed there,leaving behind long, curly droppingsfull of their victims’ fur or feathers.

Squirrels

In most of England, the only squirrelyou are likely to see will be the greysquirrel, introduced from NorthAmerica in the nineteenth century.These animals are extremely agile,using their long fluffy tails to assistbalance. Some are tinged with ginger,leading people to confuse them withour native red squirrels, which are richchestnut in colour and, in winter, havedistinctive red tufts of fur on the topsof their ears. Grey squirrels also spendmuch of their time on the ground,whereas the native reds generallyremain in trees. Red squirrels inEngland are now largely confined to afew northern areas and, in the south, tothe Isle of Wight and a couple ofislands in Poole Harbour. Both species

build nests (dreys) which resemblelarge, domed birds’ nests but with theleaves still on the twigs.

Squirrels may enter houses by climbingcreepers or adjacent trees, gainingaccess to lofts where tiles or bricks aremissing. Lofts provide warm, safeplaces to give birth, but – once installed– squirrels can do considerabledamage, chewing wiring, wood andeven pipes. Live trapping them is not anoption. It is unlawful to release a greysquirrel into the wild and any animalcaptured has, therefore, to behumanely killed. Excluding themaltogether is preferable.

Squirrels tend to be active in mid-morning and mid-afternoon so this isthe time to block all their entry points

This is a characteristic stance of the weasel,probably enabling it to put its acute sense of smellto best use. Dave and Brian Bevan

Stoats are generally longer than weasels and may be twice their weight. Derek Middleton/Avico Ltd

The red squirrel is now a great rarity in England. Paul Keene/Avico Ltd

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with balls of chicken wire. Wait until allthe squirrels have gone out and stuffwire balls tightly into the holes. Ensurethat all the squirrels have left and thatthere are no nests containing young inthe roof-space. You will not want toshut their mother out and trap theminside to starve. If there are young, waituntil they are old enough to go out withtheir mother before sealing theentrances. Grey squirrels have twolitters a year, which means they willhave dependent young for much of thespring and summer.

Grey squirrels eat a wide range of food,including bulbs, insects, fungi, fruit and

birds’ eggs. Their liking for seeds hasled them to become adept at raidingbird tables, even overcoming physicalobstacles. Why not provide yoursquirrels with their own feeding stationand make it a real puzzle so they haveto work out how to reach it? This wayyou can keep them off your birdfeeders while admiring their ingenuity.

There are now several genuinelysquirrel-proof bird feeders on themarket. Alternatively you can mixsquirrel deterrents with bird food. Oneis made with peppers which repelsquirrels but not birds.

Badgers and foxes

Badgers are unmistakable, with theirwhite faces and broad black stripesrunning through their ears and eyesand down to their noses. Although eachhair is black and white, their body furappears grey or even brown. They haveshort powerful legs and large, five-clawed feet.

Evidence of the presence of badgersincludes small pits called ‘snuffle holes’produced when they dig forearthworms and other invertebrates.Occasionally, they may dig a small settunder your shed. Badgers are less activein winter but, unlike some mammals,do not hibernate. Cubs are usually bornin late January or February but stayunderground for about two months.

Foxes are now a common sight in manygardens, perhaps more so in urbanareas. They are highly intelligent andextraordinarily adaptable animals,eating whatever is available, animal orvegetable. Whereas badgers are veryrarely seen before dusk, foxes are boldenough to turn up at any time,although they are generally nocturnal.Cubs are born in March and remain inthe den (called an ‘earth’) for almost amonth before emerging for exerciseand play.

Both badgers and foxes come togardens in search of prey items such asearthworms (the badger’s main food),beetles and cranefly larvae. Theirdroppings are distinctive. Fox ‘scats’often have a ‘tail’ at one end and are

The agility of grey squirrels means they can get virtually anywhere. Dave and Brian Bevan

Badgers are present in every English county andare found in the parks of outer London. Hugh Clark/Avico Ltd

Fox on hen house in search of an easy meal. Dave and Brian Bevan

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left in prominent places, while badgerdroppings are rather loose and left inshallow holes known as dung pits.

Mammal droppings may contain theeggs of intestinal parasites. Those offox cubs especially can contain theeggs of the roundworm Toxocara canis.In theory, these eggs can be passed tochildren. There is not a single knowninstance of this happening butdroppings should nevertheless alwaysbe removed from play areas.

If you want to discourage foxes andbadgers from visiting your garden,avoid using fertilisers containinganimal remains, such as fish, blood orbonemeal. Both species have an acutesense of smell and will come in searchof the source. For the same reason, put

heavy lids on your dustbins andcompost bins and block any largeaccess points to the garden. Removeitems leaning against fences and fill ingaps underneath them. Some of thecommercially available animalrepellents may work well and a radiotuned to a voice station may also be aneffective deterrent. An extrememeasure would be an electric fence.These fences need to have two strandsset 7.5 cm and 20 cm above the ground.You can get a fence – and a 12 v batteryto power it – from agriculturalsuppliers, who will also advise you howto erect it. Unearthing the urban foxhas more details (see Furtherinformation, page 29). Where badgersare causing damage to land orproperty, the Department for

Environment, Food and Rural Affairs(Defra) can issue licences for measuresthat will exclude them from their settsand prevent them from returning.Contact Natural England for details (seeContacts, page 29).

Deer

Deer are frequent garden visitors incertain parts of the country, tempted into eat tasty flowers and shrubs. Of thesix species now found wild in the UK,the most likely to be seen in gardensare the roe deer and the muntjac.

The roe deer is one of our two nativedeer species, the other being the muchlarger red deer. Roe deer are a bright,foxy red in summer and dull grey inwinter. Males have short, gnarled, spikyantlers. You might also see their

Badgers can rapidly create havoc with a rubbish bin! Dave and Brian Bevan

Roe buck at rest. Dave and Brian Bevan

Young roe deer. Paul Keene/Avico Ltd

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distinctive droppings, which often looklike little fat wine bottles with a dimpleat one end and a point at the other.Their footprints, called slots, resemblethose of sheep but are more pointed.

The muntjac is our smallest deer,standing no higher than 42 cm at theshoulder – about the height of alabrador. Chestnut in summer anddarker brown in winter, it has twodistinctive black lines running down itsforehead. Males have two short, single-spiked antlers and very short tusksprotruding below the upper lip.Muntjac escaped from the Duke ofBedford’s estate at Woburn more than100 years ago and have since spread tomuch of southern England and theMidlands. They are now turning up insuburban and even urban areas.

Making gardens more attractive tomammals

For many years, it was fashionable tohave orderly, manicured gardens withdeadwood, cuttings and fallen leaves

promptly cleared away – the veryopposite of what mammals need!However, with the gardening public’sinterest in wildlife developing sorapidly, more people now have agreater understanding of its needs andare more tolerant of a degree ofuntidiness. Ideally, you should allow atleast one area of your garden to go justa little wild, cutting shrubs and treesback less frequently.

If you have a large lawn, you couldconsider letting one part of it growlong, only mowing it every couple ofyears. This may encourage field volesinto your garden to live in the mat ofdead stems at the bottom of the grassclumps. Undisturbed areas will givecover to shy, elusive mammals and willalso offer nest building materials – inthe form of twigs and leaves – andquiet corners in which to build them.These refuge areas will provide smallmammals with a base from which theycan venture into neighbouring gardensand other areas to forage, the animalsreturning to your garden to rest,hibernate and even breed.

Coming and going

Most mammals have fairly largeterritories so an individual gardenmight only be part of a larger habitat.Boundaries around gardens will not bea serious impediment to mostmammals, which can usually get over,under or through them. Deer can jumpfences and even hedgehogs can climbwalls. However, if you are trying to

encourage mammals into the garden,make access as easy as possible. Ensurethere are gaps at, or below, groundlevel in any fences or hedges. Thesedon’t have to be large and you cancamouflage them with plants andshrubs. A badger needs a gap about 20cm deep and 30 cm wide in order tosqueeze under a fence, and many otherspecies will use the same route. Wallsare more difficult but a log pile in acorner, or a trellis, can help mammalsclimb over them; even a gap under agarden gate may be enough. If it’s yourwall (or, if not, if your neighbour isunderstanding!) try knocking out acouple of bricks near ground level tomake it easier for small mammals – andalso amphibians – to come and go.

Plant foods for mammals

Many of the trees, plants and shrubswe grow in our gardens will providefood for mammals throughout the year.However, most of the best ones toplant are native species (even if theyare domesticated varieties) as Britishmammals may not have a taste forsome alien flowers or fruits. Hazel,crab-apple, hawthorn, privet, guelderrose, wayfaring tree and spindle are allsmall to medium-size shrubs or treesuseful to small mammals. Bramble isexcellent, too, though it needs to bekept under control as it spreads rapidly.Ivy is valuable for its cover, autumnflowers and winter berries. All thesespecies will also benefit birds, as wellas insects such as moths and

The introduced muntjac is now common in much of southern England. Dave and Brian Bevan

Weasels like to hunt in long grass. Dave and Brian Bevan

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butterflies. In spring, many mammalspecies feast on buds and fruitblossoms while in autumn, they gorgethemselves on ripe berries and fruitbefore the hardships of winter. For verysmall mammals, even brief foodshortages in periods of cold weathercan be fatal. You should aim to havegarden fruiting at different times tohelp ensure that food is constantlyavailable. In addition, flowering plantssuch as honeysuckle – and especiallynight-scented blooms such as stocks,evening primrose and nicotiana(tobacco plant) – will attract insects, soproviding food for bats.

Artificial feeding

Feeding can be a good way to attractmammals to your garden regularly,although it is not without its problems.Artificial feeding will also create manyopportunities for you to see visitingmammals. Cooked foods and sugarythings should almost always beavoided although wood mice have ataste for chocolate drops! Some of thesimplest foods are best. Peanuts andraisins scattered in the grass will keepfoxes and badgers busy for longperiods as they sniff them out, andbadgers are equally fond of windfallapples. Badgers are more likely to cometo gardens during prolonged periods ofdry weather, when earthworms areharder to find. Supplementary feedingmay be particularly appreciated at thistime, especially by those animals withcubs to support.

It has to be said that badgers andgardens do not always mix well. Oncelured into a garden by the offer ofraisins, they may start looking aroundfor other food. They have no respect forstrawberry beds nor for raspberrypatches! They may also tear up yourwell tended lawn in search ofcockchafer beetles in late summer orearly autumn. What’s more, if theysmell something tasty in your rubbishbin they can easily knock it over andscatter the contents about. But for allthis they are wonderful to watch and, iffed routinely, can become quitetrusting. They will, though, remaincautious at all times. However, takecare. If there’s a sett on the other sideof a busy road from you, then makingefforts to attract badgers to yourgarden is eventually almost certain toprove fatal for some of the animals.

Special foods for hedgehogs are nowavailable although they are happy withGarden fruits like apples and rose hips provide

food for several species of small mammal,including the wood mouse. Paul Keene/Avico Ltd

This badger was lured into a garden by peanutbutter smeared on the fence! Dave and Brian Bevan

Hazel dormice are fond ofall sorts of fruits, includingblackberries. Hugh Clark/Avico Ltd

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Dave and Brian Bevan

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pet food. Put a dish of food under amilk crate or something similar tokeep the local cats away. Milk,however, is probably best avoided asit may make hedgehogs sick.

Water

All mammals need to drink and one ofthe best ways of encouragingmammals into your garden is tocreate a pond. These are simple toconstruct and enormously beneficialfor all wildlife. A pond should not besited under trees, as falling leaves willclog it up in autumn. Instead, locate itnext to cover such as a low shrubberyor a rockery. Alternatively, providecover nearby after you’ve made the

pond. This protection will enablemammals to reach your pond withouthaving to cross wide open expanses ofmown lawn, where they are mostvulnerable to predators such as cats.

Ensure that your pond has at least oneshallow end from which mammals likehedgehogs can easily get in and out.Hedgehogs swim well but may gettrapped – and drown – in steep-sidedponds. If your garden already has apond with steep sides you can createan escape route with a plank of wood.Make a ramp by resting one end on thebank and putting the other into thewater. Add a few aquatic plants andplant some wetland species on thepond margins – native species in bothcases. However, try to resistintroducing fish, which will eattadpoles and other pond animals. Fordetailed information on wildlife ponds,refer to the Natural Englandpublications Ponds and boggy areas:havens for wildlife and Amphibians inyour garden (see Contacts, page 29).

Garden chemicals

Chemicals can help control unwantedplant growth and garden pests.However, almost all poisons will kill farmore than their target species and mayremain toxic in the soil for longperiods. Hedgehogs eat large numbersof invertebrates every night, includingslugs that may have fed on slug pellets.It is believed that the poisons fromthese pellets may accumulate inhedgehogs and harm them. In the same

way, slug pellets may also be linked tothe falling numbers of song thrushes.Controlling weeds and pests is moredifficult without chemicals, butalternative methods do exist and areavailable from garden centres. Bychoosing these alternatives, you areacknowledging that wildlife isimportant in your garden.

Shelter

Many mammals make homes forthemselves underground or in trees.Remember that hedgehogs in particularare often attracted to the warmth andsafety of unlit bonfires and compostheaps so it is essential to check bothbefore disturbing them or setting abonfire alight. A log pile in a quiet spot,with lots of gaps and holes, offershedgehogs and other mammals analternative safe place to shelter. If thepile is at least 1 m high, about the sameacross and around 1.5 m long,hedgehogs may even choose tohibernate beneath it. A sheet of

This bird feeder is no challenge for a greysquirrel. Dave and Brian Bevan

Hedgehogs are good swimmers and can easily getout of ponds if the edges are shallow. Dave and Brian Bevan

Reflecting weasel! Dave and Brian Bevan

Hedgehogs may be adversely affected by slugpellets. Dave and Brian Bevan

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corrugated iron or a large board placedon the ground in an undisturbed cornerwill often attract small mammals tonest underneath, safe from mostpredators. It can be easily covered withvegetation to avoid creating anunsightly feature: its effectiveness willbe unaffected by whatever is placedover it.

Predators and prey – cats

There are about eight million cats inBritain. Their inclination to hunt – andtheir skill in doing so – varies hugelyfrom one individual to another butthere is no doubting their cumulativeimpact. A survey by The MammalSociety in 1997 concluded that cats killno fewer than 250 million creatures in

Britain every year! Among mammalspecies, mice, voles, shrews and rabbitsare the most frequent victims.However, grey squirrels, bats and –surprisingly – weasels and even stoatsare sometimes taken, as well asdeclining species like water voles anddormice. Whatever its overall effect onthe populations of particular species,keeping a cat is rarely compatible withencouraging small mammals into agarden.

If you own a cat you should takeresponsibility for your pet and not let itroam freely. Most small mammals arekilled at night and most birds early inthe morning so providing your cat withits main meal late in the afternoon – sothat it gets used to coming home

before dusk – is a good ploy, and it canthen be kept indoors until well afterdawn. This restriction may also helpyour cat itself as it will then be lesslikely to get run over or into fights withother cats. Bells and ultrasonic devicesfitted to the collar may also help,although their effectiveness seems todecline over time as cats learn to copewith these devices. If you are not thecat owner, then try one of theultrasonic cat deterrents on the market

to deter the animals from high-riskareas in your garden. They areexpensive, though, and will only covera fairly small area.

Mammals through the seasons

Mammals come to your gardenthroughout the year. Although manyBritish mammals are far less active inwinter, only hazel dormice, bats andhedgehogs can be said to hibernate.However, bats may wake in very warm

The domestic cat is the most dangerous garden predator of all. Dave and Brian Bevan

The brown long-eared is one of the most widely distributed species of bat in Britain. Frank Greenaway

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spells and with increasingly mildwinters, hedgehogs are now seenforaging later and later in the year. Nohibernating animal should be disturbed– the process consumes the reserves ofenergy it needs to see it through thecold weather.

Problems and concerns

Even very tolerant gardeners mayencounter difficulties with some

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Rabbits will eat almost any garden plant. Stephen Oliver

mammal species. There is not always asimple answer but you can alleviatesome problems. Some concerns springfrom a desire to protect vulnerableanimals from predation. While this isunderstandable, it has to be recognisedthat the mammals in your garden – catsaside! – are wild and that interferingwith the natural cycle in which somekill while others are killed is generallynot helpful.

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Damage to plants by rabbits and deer

Deer are very hard animals to exclude– and rabbits even more so. The onlycertain method is secure perimeterfencing and this comes with a highprice tag! Enclosing especiallyvulnerable garden areas such asvegetable plots may be more realistic,

with chicken mesh available at areasonable price. Otherwise acompromise solution, like cultivatingplants less attractive to rabbits anddeer, may be the only option. Thedrawback is that rabbits will eat almostany plant, and if hungry will take all butthe most strong-smelling or spinymaterial.

Gathering information

Most garden mammals live their – oftenvery brief – lives out of our sight andhearing. Some high pitched squeaksfrom the undergrowth may suggest thepresence of a shrew but such smallanimals are rarely seen alive out in theopen. Much the same can be said ofmice and voles. Relatively few peopleare capable of identifying mammalspecies and far less is known aboutsmall garden mammals than is the casewith other wildlife such as birds oreven the larger invertebrates. Withoutadequate knowledge, successfulconservation of our wildlife is made farmore difficult, so it’s vital that wegather as much information aspossible. Both The Mammal Society andMammals Trust UK regularly runsurveys asking people all over the UK tosend in records of mammals they see ingardens and elsewhere. You don’t haveto be an expert to do this and there aresimple and inexpensive guides to helpyou. See Further information, opposite.

Contacts

Natural England1 East Parade Sheffield, S1 2ETEnquiry Service: 0845 600 3078enquiries@naturalengland.org.ukwww.naturalengland.org.uk

The Mammal Society2B Inworth StreetLondon, SW11 3EPTel: 0207 350 2200 enquirieswww.abdn.ac.uk/mammal/

Mammals Trust UK15 Cloisters House8 Battersea Park RoadLondon, SW8 4BGTel: 0207 498 5262 enquirieswww.mtuk.org

The Bat Conservation Trust2 Cloisters House 8 Battersea Park Road London, SW8 4BG Tel: 0207 627 2629 Bat Helpline: 0845 1300 228 www.bats.org.uk

The Wildlife TrustsThe Kiln Waterside Mather Road Newark, NG24 1WT Tel: 01636 677711 www.wildlifetrusts.org

People's Trust for Endangered Species15 Cloisters House8 Battersea Park RoadLondon, SW8 4BG Tel. 020 7498 4533www.ptes.org.uk

Further information

This is one of a range of wildlifegardening booklets published byNatural England. For more details,contact the Natural England EnquiryService on 0845 600 3078 or e-mailenquiries@naturalengland.org.uk

Guards for fruit trees are one way of protectingthem from rabbits. Dave and Brian Bevan Pygmy shrew on moss.

Dave and Brian Bevan

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Natural England also producesGardening with wildlife in mind, anillustrated wildlife reference.Originally on CD but now alsoavailable online, Gardening withwildlife in mind has detailedinformation on 800 plants and animalspecies often found in our gardens,and shows how they are ecologicallylinked. See www.plantpress.com

Other titles

Baker, P. & Harris, S. Urban foxes.Whittet. 1986.

Bullion, S. A key to British landmammals. The Mammal Society/FSC.1998.

Bullion, S. A guide to British mammaltracks and signs. The MammalSociety/FSC. 2001.

Clark, M. Badgers. Whittet. 1988.

Jones, K. & Walsh, A. A guide to theidentification of British bats. TheMammal Society/FSC. 2001.

Morris, P. Dormice. Whittet. 2004.

Morris, P. Hedgehogs. Whittet. 1983.

Morris, P. & Sargent, G. How to findand identify mammals. The MammalSociety. 2003.

Richardson, P. Bats. Whittet. 2001.

Strachan, R. Mammal detective.Whittet. 2002.

Williams, T. & Wilson, A. Unearthingthe urban fox. The Fox Project. 2000.

All of the above are available fromThe Mammal Society, which also sellsa range of books on individualmammal species. Further information,including free fact sheets onindividual mammal species, is alsoavailable on the websites of TheMammal Society and Mammals TrustUK, see Contacts, page 29.

Bank vole coming out of hole in tree.Dave and Brian Bevan

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