Discover Native Species at Fota Wildlife Park

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Discover more about the native species that live in Fota Wildlife Park.

A red-haired member of the rodent family, the Red Squirrel is an arboreal creature with a distinctive bushy tail and long ear tufts. Males and females are the same size and can grow up to 23cm in height with a tail length of between 15 and 20cm. The species’ coat becomes a lighter colour in the warmer summer months.

The European hedgehog is the species of hedgehog found here in Ireland and one of the native species in Fota Wildlife Park, though you may not have seen them as they are largely nocturnal.

The pygmy shrew is Ireland’s smallest mammal measuring only between 4.5 and 6 cm with a long slender tail reaching up to 5 cm in length, fully grown adults will weigh less than 4 grams. Body colouration is of a darkish brown tint with a lighter underbelly with the tail being more sparsely covered in fur. They will moult their coats in the early summer before growing a thick coat again for the colder winter season. The pygmy shrew is often mistaken for a mouse as it also has long whiskers, short ears and small eyes, however the main distinguishing features are the shrew’s more velvet like fur, smaller body size and a lightly furred tail.

Badgers are a medium-sized omnivore, about the size of an average dog. They have black stripes along their faces which are very noticeable. They like woodland as it provides good places for them to dig their setts, preferably within close proximity to fields or meadows where they forage for food.

The Red Fox is a member of the dog or canid family and familiar to us all. They are an omnivore like the badger and eat small mammals and forage for fruit or berries. Their eyes are at the front of their head to measure distance and they've great hearing, all this helps with hunting.

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Cork Discovers is proudly brought to you by UCC Academy, University College Cork, Teagasc, Cork City Council, CIT Blackrock Castle Observatory and British Council with special thanks to our media partners 96FM and Irish Examiner. This project has received funding the European Union's Horizon 2020 Research and Innovation Programme under grant agreement no. 955330