# Hazel dormouse (*Muscardinus avellanarius*)

Canonical page: https://creaturedata.com/animals/hazel-dormouse  
Data as of: 2026-11-11

The hazel dormouse (Muscardinus avellanarius) is a rodent in the family Gliridae, subfamily Leithiinae, within the order Rodentia. It is a small mammal with an adult body mass of 27.5 g, and it is nocturnal and arboreal. Its diet category is nectarivore and its trophic level is herbivore. Gestation lasts 24 days, litters average 4.3 young with 1.5 litters per year, and sexual maturity comes at 340.6 days.

## Quick facts

| Fact | Value |
|---|---|
| Weight | 27.5 g |
| Length | Not recorded |
| Lifespan | 6 years |
| Diet | Nectarivore |
| Main food | Not recorded |
| Habitat | woodland |
| Gestation | 24 days |
| Young per litter or clutch | 4.3 |
| Age at maturity | 11 months – 11.4 months |
| Litters or clutches a year | 1.5 |
| Active | At night (nocturnal) |
| Lifestyle | Arboreal |
| Conservation status | Least Concern (IUCN) |
| Countries on record | Not recorded |

## Classification

- kingdom: Animalia
- phylum: Chordata
- class: Mammalia
- order: Rodentia
- family: Gliridae
- genus: Muscardinus
- species: *Muscardinus avellanarius* (Linnaeus, 1758)

Synonyms: *Mus avellanarius*, *Mus corilinum*, *Muscardinus avellanarius abanticus*, *Muscardinus avellanarius anglicus*, *Muscardinus avellanarius niveus*, *Muscardinus avellanarius pulcher*, *Muscardinus avellanarius zeus*, *Muscardinus pulcher*, *Muscardinus trapezius*, *Myoxus muscardinus*, *Myoxus speciosus*

## Common questions

### What kind of animal is the hazel dormouse?

The hazel dormouse is a rodent, a mammal in the family Gliridae and the order Rodentia.

### How much does a hazel dormouse weigh?

An adult hazel dormouse weighs 27.5 g, which places it in the small size class.

### What does the hazel dormouse eat?

The hazel dormouse is a nectarivore, and its trophic level is herbivore.

### Is the hazel dormouse endangered?

No. The hazel dormouse is listed as Least Concern (LC) in the global IUCN assessment, which is not a threatened category.

### How long does a hazel dormouse live?

The hazel dormouse has a lifespan of 6 years.

### How many young does a hazel dormouse have?

The hazel dormouse has 4.3 young per litter and 1.5 litters per year, after a gestation period of 24 days.

### When does a hazel dormouse reach sexual maturity?

The hazel dormouse reaches sexual maturity at 340.6 days, with reported values from 335 to 346.1 days.

## Sources

- [An amniote life-history database to perform comparative analyses with birds, mammals, and reptiles](https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.3563457.v1), CC0 1.0, E096-269. Myhrvold, N.P., Baldridge, E., Chan, B., Sivam, D., Freeman, D.L. & Ernest, S.K.M. (2015) An amniote life-history database to perform comparative analyses with birds, mammals, and reptiles. Ecology 96: 3109. https://doi.org/10.1890/15-0846R.1. Data: https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.3563457.v1
- [Catalogue of Life eXtended Release](https://www.checklistbank.org/dataset/316691), CC BY 4.0, 2026-10-16 XR. Catalogue of Life (2026). Catalogue of Life eXtended Release, version 2026-10-16 XR. Catalogue of Life Foundation, Amsterdam, Netherlands. https://doi.org/10.48580/dgzlf
- [Wikimedia Commons](https://commons.wikimedia.org), per file (CC0 / public domain / CC BY green, CC BY-SA amber, anything else not displayed), 2026-11-11. Wikimedia Commons contributors. Wikimedia Commons. https://commons.wikimedia.org (each file credited to its author under its own licence).
- [EltonTraits 1.0: species-level foraging attributes of the world's birds and mammals](https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.3559887.v1), CC0 1.0, 1.0. Wilman, H., Belmaker, J., Simpson, J., de la Rosa, C., Rivadeneira, M.M. & Jetz, W. (2014) EltonTraits 1.0: Species-level foraging attributes of the world's birds and mammals. Ecology 95: 2027. https://doi.org/10.1890/13-1917.1. Data: https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.3559887.v1
- [Wikidata](https://www.wikidata.org), CC0 1.0, 2026-11-11. Wikidata contributors. Wikidata. https://www.wikidata.org (data retrieved via the Wikidata Query Service).
- [Wikipedia (English)](https://en.wikipedia.org), CC BY-SA 4.0, 2026-11-11. Wikipedia contributors. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. https://en.wikipedia.org (text under CC BY-SA 4.0; each block names its article and revision).

Cite as: Hazel dormouse (Muscardinus avellanarius). Retrieved from https://creaturedata.com/animals/hazel-dormouse