The Secret Life of Urban Hedgehogs

European Hedgehogs have always been a favourite of mine, and I am sure they are for many other people as well. Their little cute pointy noises, and spikey cuteness make them a childhood favourite!

The cute favourites are in big trouble, though! They are threatened and at risk of extinction in Britain and are on the red list with the British Mammals Society, with figures of 30-75% decline, depending on which survey you look at. However, it does seem that there is good news for urban hedgehogs, with studies showing a slow recovery. A 2022 study of urban areas, in particular, found that there are 7.4–176 hedgehogs per km², which would equal about 19–456 per square mile. The enormous range reflects differences in habitat, connectivity, roads, gardens and survey methods. The figures show that rural hedgehogs are in steep decline, but urban populations seem to have stabilised and show signs of a small recovery. Showing that urban gardens are not a second-rate substitute but a super important refuge.

As you close your curtains at night, their snuffling from beneath hedges, under sheds, and along fences can be heard in their search for food. Urban areas are an important refuge for these little cuties, with urban gardens providing shelter, nesting materials and food, but only if the gardens are connected! Your garden, like so much in the natural world, cannot thrive in isolation. When it connects with neighbouring gardens and other habitats, hedgehogs and other wildlife have the space and freedom they need to flourish.

Research has shown that one individual hedgehog visits about 8 gardens in one night, and some considerably more! Gardens of terraced and semi-detached homes are generally preferred. All this makes fences and walls important ecological features. Your garden may contain all the necessary hedgehog habitat needs, long grass, leaf piles and food aplenty, but if the hedgehog can't reach it, it's useless!

Hedgehogs are largely nocturnal, sheltering in nests during the day and becoming active after dusk. Urban studies have shown that they adjust their movements in response to disturbances, traffic, weather, and predation risks. A remarkable study found that hedgehogs become more active after midnight, embracing the stillness of the night when vehicle and pedestrian traffic has eased, avoiding foraging near roads and verges, yet still crossing roads.

They tend to be solitary, but their ranges can overlap, with brief courtship meetings. The breeding season is generally spring to early autumn, with the greatest activity between May and June. Hedgehogs can be polyandrous; mating with more than one male, meaning that a single litter of baby hedgehogs, called hoglets, can have different fathers. This behaviour may increase the genetic diversity of her litter, with Hoglets born to different fathers receiving various combinations of genes, which may improve the likelihood that at least some will be well-adapted to survive in changing environments. However, scientists have yet to determine whether this is the primary reason for polyandry in hedgehogs. They are pregnant for about a month, and commonly produce 3-7 hoglets, who remain with mum for several weeks, generally becoming independent at about 8 weeks old. Late-born hoglets face challenges because they have less time to build the fat reserves needed to survive winter.

Their diet is mainly invertebrates, beetles, slugs, earwigs, caterpillars, and earthworms, and this diet changes with the seasonal availability. They are also rather partial to a bowl of cat food, although they are usually less enthusiastic about sharing it with the cat! Urban gardens have lots of hunting grounds, leaf litter, compost heaps, and wildflower gardens, like the ones managed by Urban Nature Action CIC! A study showed that hedgehogs spend more time in gardens with compost heaps. This may be because the heap can provide both prey and nesting material. Those gardens providing hedgehog food had 78% occupancy, compared to 50% for those that didn’t supply the food, which is available via Urban Nature Action CIC! It must be noted that feeding is not a substitute for naturally connected, rich habitats.

Hedgehogs do not necessarily have a single permanent home. During the active season, they make relatively loose grass, leaves or other available materials day nests. Breeding nests are normally larger, and winter nests (Hibernacula) are more tightly and heavily insulated; these are also available from and can be installed by Urban Nature Action CIC! This several nest approach has been shown to be particularly important as winter approaches. This habit of moving nests means that several quiet, sheltered corners across the neighbourhood may be more useful than one immaculate hedgehog home in an otherwise barren garden – the importance of connectivity again!

Hibernation is not one several months long, uninterrupted sleep; they periodically wake, leaving the nest to drink, forage briefly, or even relocate. The timing of this hibernation varies with temperature, weather, food availability, and the individual hedgehog, although it commonly occurs between autumn and spring.

Urban spaces provide varied food, microclimates, gardens and shelter beneath sheds, decking and leaf piles. Sadly, though, the same landscape also contains serious hazards: roads, impermeable fencing, pesticides, artificial surfaces, garden machinery, the loss of untidy vegetated corners, and the good old bonfire night!

What can you do to help?

Allow access between gardens, a hole cut in the fence (hedgehog highway) can be provided and installed by Urban Nature Action CIC.

Reducing the use of pesticides, leaving dense vegetation patches, leaf litter piles, checking before strimming, moving or disturbing compost heaps, providing shallow water and ensuring ponds have escape routes, you can book an assessment of your garden via the contact page. We can help!

Feeding can support hedgehogs, but bowls and feeding stations should be cleaned thoroughly and regularly to prevent the spread of disease.

The story of the urban hedgehog is one that you can help with, and we can help you help them! Contact us today.