Havens for hedgehogs
3 March 2011
Gardeners can join forces with their neighbours to help one of our favourite garden residents by making their street or park a 'hedgehog-friendly zone', under the Hedgehog Street Initiative from the People's Trust for Endangered Species (PTES).
The charity is looking for streets where the majority of households are willing to join in to act as pilot schemes for the project. Volunteer co-ordinators help neighbours link their gardens with holes through shared hedges and fences so that hedgehogs can move around more easily in the search for food and habitats. Other measures include setting up suitable hibernation areas and adding features such as log piles to attract in the insects on which hedgehogs feed.
Hedgehogs have become a relatively rare sight in recent years, with surveys showing populations have fallen by about half since the 1970s. The drop in numbers is thought to be due to several factors including the loss and fragmentation of their natural habitats, over-tidy gardens, and rising populations of urban foxes and badgers, both of which eat hedgehogs. In rural areas intensive farming and busier roads are also taking their toll. Charities are now warning hedgehogs could be in serious danger of disappearing from our gardens altogether within the next few decades unless steps are taken to conserve the species.
The Hedgehog Street initiative is already in a pilot stage at 17 locations around the country. Anyone interested in putting their street forward should email hedgehogs@ptes.org.