James Baillie*runs in, panting*
Heard the timeline was in desperate need of a baby wild hamster right now. Got here as quickly as I could.
C Silva@JubalBarca are there wild hamsters? I’m so happy for them.
@fondoffawns Yeah! Several species worldwide: this is the European one which is sadly very endangered but there are quite visible little populations around Vienna's old graveyards and they're very cute indeed.
The European ones are much bigger than pet hamsters (which are mostly bred from littler middle-eastern species): these can grow up to more like 30cm long.
Ruth Mottram@JubalBarca is it possible this is the hamster known in Dutch as the korenwolf (corn wolf )? I imagine the name is down to their incredible destructive powers in the middle ages. What a cute animal! @fondoffawns
Mim@Ruth_Mottram @JubalBarca @fondoffawns Yes!
I found out about them after being served a beer called Korenwolf in Maastricht. There are great clips of some in a Vienna cemetary from a BBC/Attenborough documentary on YouTube. Eating candles.
@crinolinerobot I'm pretty sure that's how I found out about them too: the beer @JubalBarca @fondoffawns