Eliomys quercinus 


Taxonomy [top]

Kingdom Phylum Class Order Family
Animalia Chordata Mammalia Rodentia Gliridae

Scientific Name: Eliomys quercinus
Species Authority: (Linnaeus, 1766)
Regional Assessments:
Common Name(s):
English Garden Dormouse
French Lérot
Spanish Lirón Careto

Assessment Information [top]

Red List Category & Criteria: Near Threatened ver 3.1
Year Published: 2008
Date Assessed: 2008-06-30
Assessor(s): Bertolino, S., Amori, G., Henttonen, H., Zagorodnyuk, I., Zima, J., Juškaitis, R., Meinig, H. & Kryštufek, B.
Populations in the east have decreased significantly over the last 20-30 years, and the species may have disappeared from as much as 50% of its former range during the last 30 years. However, there is little information on the current decline rate. Since the western populations remain stable, the overall reduction over the last 10 years is almost certainly less than 30% (the threshold for Vulnerable under criterion A). However, as the species is suffering significant ongoing decline, the cause of which is not understood, it is listed as Near Threatened. The species has declined more than almost any other rodent in Europe.
Previously published Red List assessments:
1996 Vulnerable (VU)

Geographic Range [top]

Range Description:Eliomys quercinus is endemic to Europe, where it was historically widespread from Portugal in the west to the Urals (Russia) in the east. It is now largely confined to western Europe, including numerous Mediterranean islands, with eastern populations having become scattered and fragmented. The focus of the species range in the region is in the west. It is a polytypic species, and some insular populations are distinctive forms (e.g., Balearic Islands). Its altitudinal range is from sea level to 2,000 m.
Countries occurrence:
Andorra; Austria; Belarus; Belgium; Bosnia and Herzegovina; Croatia; Czech Republic; Estonia; Finland; France; Germany; Italy; Latvia; Luxembourg; Moldova; Netherlands; Poland; Portugal; Romania; Russian Federation; Slovakia; Slovenia; Spain; Switzerland; Ukraine
Possibly extinct:
Upper elevation limit (metres):2000
Range Map:Click here to open the map viewer and explore range.

Population [top]

Population:Population declines, range contractions and local extinctions have occurred in central, eastern and southern Europe over the last few decades. Some island populations are declining. The species is now rare in Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania (probably extinct: Juškaitis 2003), east Germany and the Czech Republic (Andera 1994) and adjacent Austria (Spitzenberger 2002), and has disappeared completely from the Slovakian part of the Carpathians and from the Croatian mainland. The last record in Romania is over 20 years old (I. Coroiu pers. comm. 2006). In the south of Spain, where it was formerly abundant and expanding, it is now rare (Ruiz and Roman 1999, Palomo and Gisbert 2002). In Portugal a decline in population is possible, although causes and magnitude of any such reduction are unknown (Cabral et al. 2005). Many of the declines were over the last 50 years or so, with some of the declines more recently recorded. The species may have been lost from over half of the range in the last 30 years (S. Bertolino pers. comm. 2006). In parts of its range where it is more abundant, population density is usually less than 10 individuals per hectare, though exceptionally densities of 30-50 individuals per hectare have been recorded (Filippucci 1999).
Current Population Trend:Decreasing
Additional data:
Population severely fragmented:No

Habitat and Ecology [top]

Habitat and Ecology:Its main habitat is woodland (coniferous, deciduous, and mixed), although it is sometimes found in orchards and gardens. It is less arboreal than some other dormice, and is often found on the ground in rocky areas, cracks in stone walls, and even in houses (Le Louarn and Spitz 1974, Vaterlaus 1998, Filippucci 1999, Spitzenberger 2002, Bertolino 2006).

Threats [top]

Major Threat(s): It has been suggested that it is threatened in some areas (especially Corsica) by direct competition with the brown rat Rattus norvegicus (Macdonald and Barrett 1993). The populations from Germany eastwards are declining (H. Meinig pers. comm. 2006), but the reasons are not well known, although thought to be related to habitat changes. In some areas of orchards, the species is considered a pest.

Conservation Actions [top]

Conservation Actions: It is listed on Appendix III of the Bern Convention. The species is found in many protected areas. There is a need to determine why the populations in the eastern part of the range are in decline, to monitor these populations, and to identify and implement appropriate conservation measures.

Classifications [top]

1. Forest -> 1.4. Forest - Temperate
suitability: Suitable  
suitability: Suitable  
suitability: Marginal  
suitability: Marginal  

In-Place Research, Monitoring and Planning
In-Place Land/Water Protection and Management
  Conservation sites identified:Yes, over entire range
In-Place Species Management
In-Place Education
1. Research -> 1.3. Life history & ecology
1. Research -> 1.5. Threats
1. Research -> 1.6. Actions
3. Monitoring -> 3.1. Population trends

Bibliography [top]

Andera, M. 1994. The present status of dormice in the Czech Republic. Hystrix (n.s) 6(1-2): 155-159.

Bertolino, S. 2006. Microhabitat use by garden dormice (Eliomys quercinus) during nocturnal activity. Journal of Zoology (London).


Filippucci, M. G. 1999. Eliomys quercinus. Academic Press, London, UK.


Juškaitis, R. 2003. New data on distribution, habitats and abundance of dormice (Gliridae) in Lithuania. Acta Zoologica Academiae Scientiarum Hungaricae 49(1): 55-62.

Le Louarn, H. and Spitz, F. 1974. Biologie et écologie du lérot Eliomys quercinus L. dans les Hautes-Alpes.

Macdonald, D. W. and Barrett, P. 1993. Mammals of Britain and Europe. Collins, London, UK.


Ruiz, G. and Román, J. 1999. Desaparece el lirón careto atlántico (Eliomys quercinus lusitanicus) en Doñana? Resúmenes de las IV Jornadas Españolas de Conservacion y Estudio de Mamiferos. Segovia.


Vaterlaus, C. 1998. Der Gartenschläfer (Eliomys quercinus L.). Ökologie, Populationsstruktur und die Verbreitung in der Schweiz. Ph.D. Thesis, University of Basel.

Citation: Bertolino, S., Amori, G., Henttonen, H., Zagorodnyuk, I., Zima, J., Juškaitis, R., Meinig, H. & Kryštufek, B. 2008. Eliomys quercinus. In: The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2008: e.T7618A12835766. . Downloaded on 29 May 2016.