The Dormouse Body
Dormice have characteristically big black eyes and soft fine fur. The
Hazel Dormouse is also the only species of dormouse to have such a
fluffy,
squirrel like tail.
Also, unlike the tail of other rodents, they dormouse's tail is rather
delicate, and prone to the skin coming off, and then the bones falling
off too.
It is not uncommon to see a dormouse with a truncated tail.
The Dormouse's Teeth
Dormice have four molar teeth, where they are usually three in other
rodents.
Dormouse teeth have transverse ridges instead of knobbly lumps as in
mice or zig zag ridges as in hamsters.
The Dormouse's Feet
The dormouse has extremely powerful feet. Dormice have sharp claws, and
sticky pads on their feet, which helps
the dormouse to climb trees.
A dormouse can also rotate it's hind feet at the ankle, so it can hang
upside-down from a branch, very handy in an arboreal lifestyle.
The Dormouse Body - The
Inside
The dormouse has no caecum. This is an organ which many other mammals
have, such as cows. It is used to digest things like leafs.
Because the dormouse doesn't have a caecum, so must specialise more in
its food, eating things like berries. See dormouse
diet
& feeding for more
information on the dormouse's
diet. 