Meet little Xavier, the rescued hedgehog.
Xavier was an autumn arrival into the ‘brooder’ room of Vale Wildlife Hospital in the middle of England. Although he’s still just a baby with a rough start to life, he has grown by leaps and bounds since he first came in with his two siblings on that fateful day - a dog raided their nest and their mother ran away. Wildlife rescuers waited & waited for her to come back but she never did, so they had no other option than to take in the 3 orphans.
Xavier under sedation so that he could be examined. A healthy hedgehog cannot be consciously 'unrolled' to look for injuries, so a brief sedation is required to make sure everything is ok.
Voted Britain’s favourite mammal, the hedgehog Erinaceus europaeus can be found in woodlands, farmlands and urban areas across the UK. If you are ever lucky enough to encounter one of these truly endearing creatures in the wild, it is a sight you are unlikely to forget. With beady little eyes, snuffly little snouts and of course that characteristic coat of modified hairs or ‘spines’, these remarkable forest floor creatures become active when the sun goes down. Classed as omnivores, in actuality they feed mainly on invertebrates like beetles, slugs, caterpillars and earthworms, giving them the reputation as ‘the gardener’s best friend’.
Vet Paul examining a hedgehog case that has just come in at another animal hospital
Hedgehog hibernation occurs in a winter nest or ‘hibernaculum’ from November to March in the UK when it is cold and food is in short supply. Around April, as daylight increases and the weather warms, they wake to breed. After a gestation of 31-35 days sows (yes, sows) give birth to typically 4-6 hoglets which will be by her side for about 8 weeks. And no, babies are not born with spines (ouch!), although the quills do begin their emergence within hours after birth!
Baby hedgehogs or hoglets, so young their eyes are not yet open
Baby hedgehogs or hoglets
Hedgehogs in Britain are in trouble. In the mid-1990’s it was estimated that there were approximately 1.5 million animals. This figure has dropped precipitously in just a couple of decades - by 30% in urban populations and over 50% in rural populations - making them vulnerable to disappearing altogether from the British countryside.
'whipper snapper' injury, a garden tool used to cut grass, injured the nose of this hedgehogs. Their noses are extremely sensitive - and important for finding food.
Although their 5000+ spines have served as a useful defensive mechanism against natural threats over the centuries, nature’s armour has proven no match against new threats that have emerged in recent times: Habitat loss & fragmentation, changes in farming practices from pastoral to intensive arable crops, expanded field sizes with decreased hedgerow areas and large scale use of chemicals, have all lead to landscapes that are relatively barren of biodiversity, shelter and food sources.
Have you noticed the concerning lack of bees and butterflies this summer? Or that last winter was quite mild or warm? Because it touches every fabric of life on the planet, climate change undoubtedly will have devastating impacts on hedgehogs - from decreased food sources to incomplete hibernation because it's just not cold enough. Unfortunately, watch this space.
Direct threats such as road deaths and dog attacks are also on the list of perils that wildlife such as hedgehogs must contend.
Hedgehog with an injured leg getting bandaged up
The alarming plunge in hedgehog populations is a concern beyond being an iconic symbol of British natural heritage. Hedgehogs are an indicator species - their population health is a signal of the greater environmental health. Their presence is a positive marker that there is an abundance of terrestrial vertebrates such as worms, slugs, snails and arthropods – that there is a varied, viable food web. After all, if an unfussy generalist such as a hedgehog is in steep decline, what does this mean for the many other species of the British isles?
It is difficult to get exact numbers for these nocturnal, secretive creatures but the data is showing that for the reasons listed above, rural populations are harder hit compared to their urban counterparts. The silver lining to this means that there are greater opportunities for the general urban public to play a direct role in conserving these special animals: Keeping a section of garden as untidy or ‘wild’ so as to attract food & provide shelter for nests, creating small holes in walls & fences to allow free passage, building hedgehog homes and joining local wildlife groups are all steps that can make a difference.
Xavier joins a long list of sick and injured hedgehogs that have been admitted at Vale, which has been getting busier year on year - almost 600 have gone through care when Xavier arrived and it wasn't even ‘the busy season’ yet. In fact, in the UK over 800 volunteer wildlife rehabilitators as well as hospitals take in over 60,000 hedgehogs every year (a number not including over 30,000 seen by vets), equating to 6-12% of the total population. Although underlying threats remain the most important challenge to address, these rescued animals show that the British public play a very real role in ensuring that future generations will continue to live side by side with this true wild icon of the British countryside.
As for Xavier, once he reaches 200 grams in weight he will graduate out of the brooder room and into the next chapter in his life, the small mammal ward. In the meantime, he and his siblings will continue to be checked daily that they are gaining weight, eating well and becoming more and more independent.
Eventually in a couple of months, the orphans will be big enough to fend for themselves and will be set free back to the wild. Ever ready for the next round of orphans and other animals in need, this will be just another day at the Vale Wildlife Centre.
You can start supporting the Vale Wildlife Centre by visiting https://www.valewildlife.org.uk/.
key words:
wildlife rescue , wildlife vet , hedgehog rescue , save hedgehogs , animal rescue
