Join the hedgehog survey

People's Trust for Endangered Species hedgehog survey
January 2012. Research in the 1970s by Britain's foremost expert on hedgehogs, Dr Pat Morris (formerly of Royal Holloway, University of London), revealed a direct link between hibernation and climate: hedgehogs came out of hibernation up to three weeks earlier in the South West of England compared to Scotland. Furthermore, in East Anglia, hedgehogs similarly spent longer in hibernation than in the London area or South West. This marked difference in hedgehog hibernation patterns across the UK shows a general trend of prolonged inactivity in proportion to the coldness of the winter.

Age, sex and weather
Dr Morris explains: "Age, sex and weather all appear to influence the timing of hedgehog hibernation. For example, young animals may remain fully active into December, no doubt seeking to develop sufficient fat reserves to ensure survival during subsequent hibernation. Also, adult females that have had late litters or may still be lactating will need to feed intensively before hibernating, causing them to be active for longer than adult males. However, mild weather can also delay hedgehogs entering into hibernation or elicit premature awakening, impacting on the creature's fat reserves and breeding times and consequently affecting the long-term survival of the species."

People's Trust for Endangered Species
Several organisations are monitoring native wildlife populations in Britain, however no one is focusing specifically on endangered hedgehogs and hibernation is an aspect of their behaviour that scientists need to understand better if People's Trust for Endangered Species (PTES) are to develop and support effective mitigation measures to halt their demise. Therefore PTES hope that with the vast people power of citizen science, PTES can identify any changes in the timing of waking hedgehogs since the initial research 40 years ago.

The survey is being run in conjunction with The British Hedgehog Preservation Society

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