Join hedgehog expert Hugh Warwick, known for his advocacy and books on the species, alongside Sophie Lund Rasmussen, Oxford researcher dubbed 'Dr. Hedgehog', and broadcaster Pam Ayres, who poetically cherishes wildlife. They dive into the quirky lives of hedgehogs, discussing mating rituals, surprising hunting skills, and quirky behaviors like self-anointing. The conversation also touches on conservation challenges, including habitat connectivity and even the threat of robotic lawn mowers, all wrapped in humor and love for these spiky mammals.
Hedgehogs, despite being beloved in Britain, face rapid population decline due to habitat destruction and modern threats like robotic lawn mowers.
Efforts to conserve hedgehogs focus on community involvement, including initiatives such as creating wildlife-friendly gardens and connecting habitats through small fence openings.
Deep dives
The Charm of Hedgehogs
Hedgehogs are beloved throughout Britain, recognized as the nation's favorite wild mammal due to their unique characteristics and endearing appearances. Their small, spiny bodies and button-like black eyes have made them particularly appealing to the public. They thrive in natural environments, but their numbers are rapidly declining due to various threats, such as accidents and habitat destruction. This decline has sparked a desire among individuals to take action to protect them, highlighting the importance of hedgehogs in British culture and wildlife.
Hedgehog Behavior and Ecology
Hedgehogs exhibit fascinating behavioral traits, including their unique mating rituals, which involve complex circling and vocalizations between males and females. They are solitary creatures, with males leaving after mating, leaving females to raise the hoglets alone, which they do for about six to seven weeks. Their evolutionary history shows that hedgehogs are not closely related to other spiny animals, like porcupines, but rather to shrews and moles. Interestingly, hedgehogs do not have a typical fight-or-flight response; instead, they often curl up when threatened, an adaptation that is becoming problematic in modern environments where cars and machinery present dangers.
Conservation Efforts for Hedgehogs
Efforts to conserve hedgehogs focus on creating wildlife-friendly environments, particularly in gardens, and encouraging community involvement through initiatives like the Hedgehog Street campaign. This campaign aims to connect gardens by making small holes in fences to allow hedgehogs to travel freely, thus enhancing their opportunities to find food and mate. Communities are encouraged to support local wildlife initiatives, and individuals are urged to provide essential resources like fresh water and safe habitats. Understanding hedgehog dietary preferences is also crucial as their natural food sources are declining, presenting challenges for their survival.
Research and Future Challenges
Current research emphasizes the impact of modern technologies, such as robotic lawnmowers, which pose new threats to hedgehogs. Studies are ongoing to develop safety features in these machines to prevent harm to hedgehogs while they forage at night. Genetic diversity among hedgehog populations is a concern, with inbreeding posing risks to their long-term survival, especially in isolated areas. The findings from ongoing studies are essential to shaping effective conservation strategies that can adapt to the evolving landscape and its challenges for hedgehog populations.
Brian Cox and Robin Ince emerge from the hedge row waking up their guests from hibernation to discuss the fascinating lives of Britain’s favourite mammal, the hedgehog. They are joined by hedgehog experts Hugh Warwick and Sophie Lund Rasmussen (also know as Dr Hedgehog), and by broadcaster and poet Pam Ayres. Sophie Lund Rasmussen has crowd sourced 14 freezers worth of dead hedgehogs for her research and has brought one of her more unique samples with her, the penis of the oldest known hedgehog who reached a stupendous 16 years of age! Together our panel snuffle their way through the evolution of hedgehogs, their life cycle and how to stop them getting run over by robotic lawn mowers!
Producer: Melanie Brown
Executive Producer: Alexandra Feachem
Researcher: Olivia Jani
BBC Studios Audio production
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