A landmark report by wildlife charity People’s Trust for Endangered Species (PTES) has revealed a 70% decline in Britain’s native hazel dormice (Muscardinus avellanarius) population since 2000.
Since the last State of Britain’s Dormice report was published in 2019, dormice have been lost from Staffordshire, Northumberland and Hertfordshire. The decline means that they are now absent from 20 English counties.
Habitat loss, degradation and poor management of Britain’s woodlands and hedgerows, compounded by climate change, are cited as main reasons for the catastrophic decline in the new State of Britain’s Dormice 2023 report.
Hazel dormice are a key indicator species in Britain’s woodlands and hedgerows, meaning the presence of dormice is usually mirrored by an increased animal and plant diversity, too.
The report reiterates the need for dormice to be classified as ‘Endangered’ on the IUCN Red List, rather than ‘Vulnerable’.
“If the decline continues at the same rate, in another 30 years dormouse populations will have fallen by 94% since 2000, which we simply cannot let happen,” said Ian White, Dormouse & Training Officer at People’s Trust for Endangered Species.
“The wealth of data from our monitoring programme gives a unique insight into how dormice are faring and contributes to major reports such as the recent State of Nature, which drives wider conservation efforts.
“Armed with the latest facts we need to continue pushing for dormice to urgently be reclassified as ‘Endangered’ on the IUCN Red List, and we need to start rolling-out more footprint tunnel surveys (as well as nest box checks) in non-woodland habitats such as hedgerows, scrub, roadside and railway verges.
“Footprint tunnels will allow us to gain a more complete picture of how dormice are faring across multiple habitats rather than just woodlands. Once we have data from non-woodland sites too, we can target conservation efforts more widely which we hope will start to reverse the decline.”
Despite the alarming topline statistics, there is hope, with conservation projects, such as PTES’ annual reintroduction programme, bolstering some local populations.
Since 1993, PTES and partners have released over 1,112 hazel dormice into 25 different woodlands in 13 counties. Meanwhile, major landscape projects to restore and connect important dormouse habitat have been implemented in Wales and Warwickshire. And hedgerow planting in Yorkshire and Hampshire is offering dormice safe passage and nesting sites between woodlands. The charity continues to install innovative arboreal dormouse bridges crossing major roads.
“Dormice continue to face an uncertain future as our climate and countryside change,” added Ian White.
“Declines on this scale cannot be fixed overnight, so it will take time before we see if our conservation work is effective. We know what works for dormice, but we urgently need increased funding to implement this nationally. Hope is not lost as reintroductions, monitoring, research and landscape projects offer a lifeline - and some populations appear to be thriving - but we need to do everything we can on a much bigger scale to prevent the worst case from happening.”
Find out more about the State of Britain’s Dormice 2023 report.