Londoners urged to create ‘hedgehog highways’ to help tiny mammals roam and forage

Londoners are being asked to help save hedgehogs

The UK’s hedgehog population has decreased since the millennium (Getty/iStock)

London’s hedgehogs are doing better than was originally thought, surveys suggest.

A number of surveys, conducted by ZSL’s London HogWatch over the 2020 summer lockdown suggested that the outlook for hedgehogs in the capital was fairly positive.

The survey showed hedgehog hotspots as well as connecting populations. However, it also identified certain areas of absence, where hedgehogs need assistance.

In the past 20 years, since the millennium, over one third of hedgehogs have been lost in the UK, according to the Wildlife charity People’s Trust for Endangered Species (PTES).

Londoners are now being asked to help by PTES. They can do this by creating so-called hedgehog highways - small holes in garden fences - which will allow local ‘hogs to roam around the area in search of shelter and food.

Other ways that people can help hedgehogs include making a wild corner of their garden, checking the area for the small mammals before strimming or making a bonfire and making any ponds safer for hedgehogs with a ramp, say PTES.