Give a helping hand

Endangered British animals are just one of the worthwhile causes you can support with a gift in your will
It most famously slept through the mayhem of the Mad Hatter's Tea Party in Alice in Wonderland - a tiny dormouse seen napping between the Hatter and the March Hare in Sir John Tenniel's famous illustration. Now this beloved little rodent is receiving nationwide attention again, after being reintroduced into regions of the country following a sharp decline in numbers over recent decades.
The reintroduction of hazel dormice in Bedfordshire this year was led by the wildlife charity People's Trust for Endangered Species (PTES), and builds on a previous release that took place in 2001 (the country's first and only dormouse reintroduction) in the same woodland, which is cared for by Forestry England.
Over the past 23 years the population of dormice has thrived there, with their range extending beyond the original release site. Now a further ten of the tiny golden-coated animals have been added to the existing population to increase its genetic diversity as part of ongoing conservation to save this charismatic little creature from extinction.
'Britain's hazel dormouse population has declined by an astounding 70% since 2000, and they have disappeared from 20 English counties over the past century,' says Ian White, training officer at PTES. 'Our annual reintroductions, alongside habitat management, landscape projects and monitoring, are paramount to the species' long-term survival.
To date we have released 1,112 dormice into 25 different woodlands in 13 counties, including six English counties where they had disappeared. It's extremely encouraging that descendants of Bedfordshire's original population are still flourishing. By introducing more dormice this summer we hope that they go from strength to strength.'
The dormice are provided by the Common Dormouse Captive Breeders Group. Once they are ready to be released into the wild they undergo an eight- week quarantine period where each dormouse receives a full nose-to-tail health check. This ensures that only fit and healthy dormice are released into the wild and that there is no risk of them introducing any disease into the habitat.
Local volunteers then carry out daily checks on the tiny new residents, who initially live in mesh cages, and top up their food and water. After ten days a final health check takes place, and if successful the cage doors are opened to allow the dormice to explore the wider woodland.
Katherine Walsh, senior environmental specialist, mammals, at Natural England says: 'The hazel dormouse is one of Britain's most iconic native species, which has sadly also become one of our most endangered. The growth of Bedfordshire's dormouse population shows that by working together we can bring our native species back from the brink.'
PTES was set up in 1977, and its current priority species also include hedgehogs, water voles and stag beetles. It relies heavily on donations and legacies in wills, which in 2022 made up a fifth of its income.

◆ To find out more about the charity's work and about leaving a legacy visit ptes.org

Picture: Adobe Stock