Tree sleeper, where are you?

Many of the last reports on the occurrence of the tree dormouse are already over 100 years old: As part of a project by the Austrian Federal Forests together with the apodemus institute and the │ nature conservation association │ the rare tree dormouse could now be detected in the Lungau!

The tree sleeper (Dryomys nitedula) is considered extremely rare and is strictly protected throughout Europe. With a body length of around 10 cm, it is one of the smaller dormice and is particularly easy to recognize by its thick, gray fur and the Zoro mask - the black eye band that extends to the ears. He finds optimal living conditions in damp, shady mixed forests with plenty of undergrowth, in which there are tree hollows and enough space for his free-standing nests.

In order to find out more about the distribution of the tree dormouse and its conspecifics in Austria, the project of the Austrian Federal Forests is now devoting itself to the search for the small rodent. A nest box campaign brings initial success: a female tree dormouse has already moved into one of the weatherproof wooden roosts. Citizen scientists are also cordially invited to take part in the search and share bilch observations on naturbeobachtung.at.

How to track down the sleeping mice

Big eyes, small round ears and a bushy tail - this is what dormouse look like. In addition to the tree dormouse, this also includes the garden dormouse (Eliomys quercinus), the dormouse (glis glis) and the dormouse (Muscardinus avellanarius). Typical of the so-called sleepers or sleep mice is the eponymous winter sleep, which they spend rolled up in hiding places in the ground or under the leaf litter. Since they are also mainly crepuscular and nocturnal, there are still many unanswered questions about their way of life. Only after hibernation and in autumn you have - with a lot of luck - the opportunity to watch the climbing masters during the day. In order to find out more about their distribution and thus to be able to work out specific protective measures, all those interested in nature are invited to take part in the search for the little images of Austria!

Naturbeobachtung.at platform

Observations of Baumschläfer and Co. on www.nature-observation.at sharing is very easy: upload a photo, announce the date and location and the report is ready. Sharing dormouse observations is even faster using the free app of the same name. Experts are available to check the sightings and provide identification assistance. In this way, the find data can be used for scientific publications and well-founded nature conservation measures.