Back from the brink

HARVEST MICE

Weighing as little as a two-pence piece and the only British mammal with a prehensile tail (one that can grasp or hold objects), the tiny harvest mouse faces plenty of challenges – from predators such as owls and cats to habitat loss. The elusive rodent is usually only found south of Yorkshire, but, last year, new harvest mouse nests were discovered at Northumberland’s East Chevington nature reserve. Their reappearance in the area is thanks to a PHD student who bred and released 240 of them there in 2004 (nwt.org.uk).