the impact of land use on harvest mouse nesting distribution in an agricultural landscape

Harvest mice are best known for their tennis ball shaped nests and arboreal lifestyle. Like many mammals, the elusive nature of the harvest mouse has rendered it under studied and under recorded. Despite this, their numbers are thought to have declined over the past 40 years, and agricultural intensification is a likely contributor.

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In 2012/13 I was lucky enough to be awarded a People's Trust for Endangered Species research internship. Under the supervision of Dr Robbie McDonald and the guidance of Dr Sarah Hodge and Dr Andy McGowan of University of Exeter, I undertook a research project that aimed to quantify the impact of farmland management on harvest mouse nesting abundance and distribution.

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By conducting nest searches and habitat surveys across an agricultural landscape, patterns could be determined between nesting abundance and land use. No nests were found in grazed fields, and cutting regimes for set-aside and hay fields were important in determining nest numbers; the longer the field or margin was left uncut, the more nests it could support.

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This internship was an amazing opportunity for me to develop skills in conducting independent research and in managing a project, running workshops and working with volunteers. All of these skills have been critical for subsequent jobs I have had within the conservation and science sector. Check out the PTES internship programme here and please get in touch if a copy of the final report would be useful for your work.

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