Where does the common shrew live?
The common shrew is the most common shrew, and one of the most common mammals, throughout Northern Europe, including Great Britain, but excluding Ireland. It has velvety dark brown fur with a pale underside. Juvenile shrews have lighter fur until their first moult. It has small eyes, a pointed, mobile snout and red-tipped teeth. It has a life span of approximately 14 months.
What does the common shrew eat?
Shrews are active day and night, taking short periods of rest between relatively long bursts of activity. Their diet is carnivorous and insectivorous: insects, slugs, spiders, worms, amphibians and small rodents. A shrew needs to consume 200% to 300% of its body weight in food each day to survive, so it must eat every 2 to 3 hours, and will starve if it goes much longer without food. It is one of the rare venomous mammals.
Is the common shrew endangered?
No: it is not considered an endangered species. In Great Britain, like other shrews, it is protected from certain methods of killing by the Wildlife and Countryside Act of 1981. It is 55 to 82 mm long and weighs 5 to 12 g.
