Shrew’s first sighting in UK courtesy of Jeff the cat
A SPECIES of shrew that is common in Guernsey and Alderney has been identified in the UK for the first time, courtesy of a cat called Jeff.
It has been reported that it was the first new mammal species in mainland Britain since the 1920s.
The greater white-toothed shrew, so named because it has white-tipped teeth rather than the more usual red, has been identified after being found and preserved in the home of a conservation volunteer in Tyne and Wear.
It is not yet clear whether the shrew – considered a non-native invasive species in the UK – found its way to north-east England directly from Guernsey, but it is hoped this might soon be determined by DNA analysis.
‘It’s most likely to have come over in a horticultural shipment,’ said Ian Bond, an ecologist and secretary of the Northumbria Mammal Group.
‘This species [crocidura russula] can be found from Spain up to the Netherlands and has recently swept through Ireland, but with Guernsey being isolated, if it has come from there, it may be possible to establish whether that island was the source.’
The species is known in some parts of Europe as the house shrew due to its habit of seeking shelter in domestic dwellings.
For some years, Melissa Young had been finding shrews in her home in the village of Easington Lane, near Sunderland.
Her cat Jeff – named after a character in Terry Deary’s Horrible Histories series – habitually toyed with the unfortunate rodents but could not have brought them in, as Miss Young keeps her cats indoors.
‘I thought it was a bit odd,’ Miss Young said. ‘I live on a classic 1940s council estate, so although there are some woods and fields nearby, it’s suburban rather than rural.’
Eventually, Miss Young posted a picture of one of the shrews on Facebook, which caught Mr Bond’s attention.
‘It was borderline, in size, really,’ said Mr Bond,’ between the type found in Guernsey and the lesser white-toothed shrew common to Jersey.’
The two soon established an online dialogue.
‘He asked me if I could preserve one of the shrews to be analysed at a later date,’ said Miss Young, ‘and, as one of them had died, I put it in the “animal drawer” of my freezer, which is where I usually keep the frozen mice I feed to my pet snake.’
A DNA test subsequently confirmed that the mammal had now officially spread into the UK.
Miss Young then went back through her archive of photographs and it was established that the sub-species had probably been in the area since at least 2015.
‘I’d love to know how it got here,’ Miss Young said.
‘What else do we not know about? It opens up many questions.’
She hopes to visit Guernsey to view the animal in its established habitat.
