This course is one in a series on British mammals and focuses on insectivores, rodents and lagomorphs. It gives a thorough introduction to these mammals including shrews, moles, hedgehogs, mice, voles, rats, squirrels, beaver, rabbits and hares. This course also covers non-native and invasive species.

Key features of species identification will be covered including skull and bone examination, population monitoring techniques, the dissection of owl pellets in addition to field surveys which will include ‘long-worth trapping’.

Practical and field exercises will involve characteristic field-signs, with a guide to tracks and trails, feeding remains, droppings, nests and burrows. Life cycles, habits and habitats will be also covered in the workshops. The distribution and status of these mammals, including BAP species and wildlife law, will be discussed in relation to their individual conservation requirements.

The course will consist of online learning through lectures and seminars as well as a compulsory two-day field session in west Wales.

Note

This module is at CQFW Level 4