Hidden talents

HE WATER SHREW IS PERHAPS OUR most mysterious mammal. Dominic Couzens, in his mammal-ogue, calls it “a shrew in a dinner jacket”, an apt description of its smart pelage: mole-black above and silvery white below. June is said to be when the female gives birth, though the species’ exceptional shyness and preference for well-vegetated ponds and ditches means sightings are rare. (Many reports are recordings of its ultrasonic squeaks, picked up by bat detectors.) The water shrew’s many adaptations to an aquatic life include a hairy tail and extra-dense fur for buoyancy, and hairy feet for swimming. It is carnivorous, unlike the shoot-nibbling water vole – and this is where its two secret weapons come in handy. The enamel in its red-tipped teeth is strengthened with iron, and it has venomous saliva potent enough to subdue small fish and frogs.