THE common shrew is one of the least understood of British animals.

The tiny mammal is not a mouse, but a fierce predator eating insects and especially earthworms.

A close look at the skull of a dead shrew shows that its teeth have a red edge to them. This marks the location of a gland that contains a poison which has a narcotic effect.

When a shrew bites an earthworm it goes into suspended animation. All the shrew has to do is to store surplus earthworms only to return later and gobble them up.

No animal is more active than the shrew and it has to eat a lot to supply the essential energy.

Lots of shrews are found dead and this is because predators, especially domestic cats, do not like the taste of shrews.

Their "acidic taste" was confirmed by a Victorian naturalist called Frank Buckland. In the interests of science Buckland tasted everything be came across in the countryside. He took careful notes and recorded how he was affected. I once read that he died of a stomach complaint!

Shrews do not hibernate and are active by day and by night with spells of high activity followed by periods of rest. They are so active that they do not live very long and seldom more than a year.

Birds, which do not have a well developed sense of smell, do eat shrews and owls are particularly partial to shrews.

The common shrew has a body length of less than three inches and is present throughout the British Isles.