Just sharing.

[sharki]

Hiya.

I'd just like to share with you all a little video i took of a shrew eating a red legged beetle.

Only shot with a digital camera so the focusing struggled abit, but show's enough of the effort the wee fella/fellaette put into it. It's little wonder why they spend most their waking lives eating.

Filmed in Dorset at around miday during July last year.

YouTube - A shrews late lunch

[ellen h]

Wow,thanks for sharing,great footage-though you have to feel a bit sorry for the beetle.......

[Fauna]

Thanks for sharing this, great little scrap going on there.

I can remember saving voles and shrews from a deep culvert when i was young (we used to do it at least once a week). We used to place them in pots untill we could get out. We made the mistake once of putting shrews and voles together...the shrews chewed the ears of the voles.

If your interested, i think the beetle is Pterostichus madidus f.concinnus.

Regards Chris...

[sharki]

Thanks Chris, Nice to get it confirmed, i'd already ID'd the beetle as a Red legged Black clock.

[aeshna5]

Interesting footage- it's not often I see shrews that aren't being released from traps, so good to see a prolonged struggle like this.

The carabid put up a fair struggle there.

[The Woodman]

When they're totally focussed as in this footage (great spot by the way) they leave themselves wide open to predation. Similar to when they fight, they seem to lose all regard for their safety.

[mbaldw]

Great footage, thanks for sharing. I love the way they always look like they're on fast-forward!

Cheers,
Marc.

[Wild-Woman]

No wonder they have to eat so frequently! They seem to burn up so many calories eating! Amazing footage. Like others have mentioned, the shrew was oblivious to anything while it tucked into the unfortunate beetle and any passing barn owl would have doubled up - shrew with beetle as a side dish.
I wonder whether it is possible that the beetle was emitting something bad tasting or toxic which was why the shrew didn't seem to make a clean kill?

[vole-woman]

Terrific. I've only ever seen shrews either dead on the path, or blurring past while I sit on the bank looking for voles.

[PMG]

I wondered whether the shrew was getting older and losing its teeth as it looked as tho it was trying to suck the beetle to death rather than bite it!! Smashing bit of footage tho!