The edible dormouse, for God's sake, the implication being that it is edible for humans. Is it sold in shops anywhere, game and fish shops? Does it appear on menus in fashionable London restaurants, the sort of place that used to deliver plovers' eggs? Not that we've heard or seen. But the little beast comes up now and then in wildlife magazines. This time with some clarity and reassurance. It is confined, as far as these islands are concerned, to Britain, and indeed to one region, the Chilterns. So it seems from a comprehensive article in the May-June issue of The Countryman. It tells us that it was first imported to the estate of Walter Rothschild at Tring in Hertfordshire. They thrived in local beech woods so much that efforts were made to exterminate them, but they soon reappeared in large numbers. Again in the 1960's it was thought they were near extinction, but they came back. So far they have stayed in the region of the Chilterns. They come originally from Central and South Europe. They are much bigger than normal dormice, looking, indeed, a bit like small squirrels, with bushy tails. Glis glis in Latin. The Romans of old liked them. Thy bred the animals in enclosed beech and hazel plantations, finally fattening them up in large jars with holes for breathing. Stuffed with pork filling, they were roasted. Petronius described them as being presented as appetisers "dipped in honey and sprinkled with poppy seeds".
The writer, John Legh, tells us that they are still trapped and eaten in some parts of Europe. And while they do damage to forests by attacking the leading shoots of trees, they might not be a serious problem in this respect on their own; but when you add the depredations of grey squirrels, rabbits and some deer, the foresters could do without them, to put it mildly. But it's not only high trees that interest them; they appear to like the higher parts of buildings especially where apples might be stored. Their climbing capacity is helped by a sticky secretion from their paws. They can even climb glass. One good point. They sleep for seven months of the year - often in groups. The Chilterns is their main centre but it is feared that people will catch them and, not wanting to kill them, for they are said to be nice, cuddly creatures, release them miles away. They are protected under the European Convention and may be killed only under license.
One biologist, Dr Pat Morris, author of a recent booklet on the glis glis is convinced it may become a national pest on a par with the grey squirrel. But in addition, this little creature invades peoples' homes. Question still not answered: who eats or has eaten the edible dormouse?