Researchers from the University of Leicester will be exploring how the UK’s changing climate could be affecting the survival of British hedgehogs as part of a new project to protect endangered animal species.
 
The project, being funded by the People’s Trust for Endangered Species, will investigate whether warmer and wetter winters are impacting invertebrate food sources for hedgehogs, which would have a detrimental effect on their ability to survive.

Though hedgehogs are an iconic species of British wildlife, their numbers are declining rapidly. Hedgehog numbers are thought to have dropped by 30% in the last ten years alone, and experts from the Wildlife Trust have estimated there are fewer than one million individuals left in the whole of the UK. Although hedgehogs were relatively common in urban areas, since the 1970s urban hedgehogs have suffered as a result of higher numbers of vehicles on our roads. They have disappeared altogether from four out of Central London’s five parks, and death on the roads are thought to be the main driver of these disappearances.  
 
Saadia Khan will lead the new project at Leicester, which will include investigating whether changing climactic conditions are affecting hedgehog survival during winter waking.
 
Saadia said, “Hedgehogs are known to periodically awake from hibernation and forage for short periods during warm winter spells. With warmer winters, these periods of winter waking may be increasing. This poses problems if the energy lost during winter waking is not replaced due to the lack of food sources available in the winter.
 
“The results from this study will help us understand how a changing climate is affecting British hedgehogs.”

Saadia will use footprint tracking tunnels to monitor hedgehog activity over winter, and use her data to determine whether hedgehogs’ foraging for food in winter has any relationship to changes in temperature. The Leicester project will also look at the availability of beetles, slugs and earthworms - hedgehogs’ main sources of food.
 
Richard Kelly, Natural Conservation Officer at Leicester City Council, added: “This is a fantastic opportunity for Leicester City Council and the University of Leicester to work together on conservation projects like this. The information obtained from this study will be invaluable.
 
“A previous study carried out by Leicester City Council called Hog-Watch found several population clusters around Leicester which have helped inform on some of the research sites in the current project. It is hoped that the findings may indicate where extra conservation efforts could be focused in helping to reduce the decline of the hedgehog.”

Previous work at the University of Leicester ha also looked at autumn food availability for hedgehogs before they go into hibernation.