Edible dormouse
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| iEdible Dormouse |
||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 |
||||||||||||||||
|
|
||||||||||||||||
| Scientific classification | ||||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||
|
|
||||||||||||||||
| Glis glis (Linnaeus, 1766) |
The edible dormouse or fat dormouse (Glis glis) is a small dormouse and the only species in the genus Glis. It was farmed and eaten by the ancient Romans, from which it gains its name. The dormice were kept and raised either in large pits or (in urban surroundings with not a lot of space) in terra cotta containers, not completely unlike contemporary hamster cages. The dormice would finally be cooked and eaten, usually as a snack.
To this day, wild edible dormice are consumed in Slovenia, where they are considered a rare delicacy, although their use as food was more widespread before World War II.[1]
The edible dormouse lives in continental Europe and has been introduced to the Chilterns of England. In England, the edible dormouse population is concentrated in a 200-square-mile triangle between Beaconsfield, Aylesbury and Luton. [2]
The edible dormouse is also known in Italy as Ghiro, for its capacity of sleeping 20 hours out of 24.
[edit] References
- Amori (1996). Glis glis. 2006 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. IUCN 2006. Retrieved on 11 May 2006.
[edit] External links
- The Dormouse Hollow
- Rodent page from Mammals Trust UK (includes sound file of Glis glis cry)
- Amersham.org page on Glis glis
 |
This rodent article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |
