Cornwall harvest mouse found at wind farm named Rabbie

The harvest mouse is Europe’s smallest mammal, weighing the same as a 2p coin and the only UK mammal to have an entirely prehensile tail.

Laura Snell, conservation officer at the wildlife trust, said harvest mice were under recorded in Cornwall until about four years ago, when volunteers started carrying out surveys.

“These surveys have found that they are widely spread across the county, and they have been discovered in a range of habitats including rough grassland, reedbeds, field margins and even in gardens,” she said.

“In Cornwall the species is particularly fond of rough tussocky grassland which provides ideal conditions for nest building.

“If areas of grassland on wind farms have been left to develop a tussocky structure, this provides ideal conditions for the species to thrive.”