Top five tips to protect hedgehogs in Shropshire this Bonfire Night

The developers, in collaboration with nationwide campaign Hedgehog Street, run by wildlife charities The British Hedgehog Preservation Society (BHPS) and People’s Trust for Endangered Species (PTES), are encouraging households to watch out for hedgehogs and other small animals that may take refuge in unlit bonfires, and to take steps to ensure their safety before any bonfires are lit.

According to the State of Britain’s Hedgehogs 2022 report published by BHPS and PTES, rural hedgehog populations have dropped by up to 75% in some parts of the country since 2000, and although urban hedgehogs appear to be faring slightly better, they all still need our help.

Alarmingly, hedgehogs have been classified as Vulnerable to extinction on the Red List for Britain’s Mammals (2020), and the reasons behind their decline include habitat loss, fragmentation and agricultural intensification. 

Barratt and David Wilson Homes have partnered with the RSPB since 2014 and are committed to supporting nature and wildlife at their developments in Shropshire.

As part of this pledge, the developers are creating wildlife friendly gardens at their developments, including hedgehog homes and ‘Hedgehog Highways’ (13cm square gaps in or under garden fences or walls), as well as a range of other eco-friendly features for other native wildlife.

Hedgehog experts from Hedgehog Street offer various top tips for helping hedgehogs in any garden, whether this be making Hedgehog Highway 13x13cm gaps in fences to allow hedgehogs access between different gardens when searching for food, shelter and mates, creating leafy corners and log piles which could be the perfect nesting areas and places to forage for natural insect food, and offering shallow dishes of water.

Hedgehog Street is also encouraging people to log hedgehog sightings on its interactive BIG Hedgehog Map, which helps researchers and conservationists to understand where hedgehogs have been spotted across the country, and how many Hedgehog Highways have been created. 

Barratt and David Wilson Homes have issued a five-point plan based on advice from experts at Hedgehog Street to help keep hedgehogs safe this Bonfire Night.

1. Stop – do you need to have a bonfire? Can you attend a community event, or mark the occasion in a more wildlife-friendly way? The fewer bonfires there are, the fewer wildlife casualties there will be. 

2. If you decide to have a bonfire, build it at the last minute to stop any hedgehogs moving in. Building your bonfire on the day of lighting can help reduce the risk to hedgehogs and other wildlife.

3. Move the entire bonfire pile to clear ground just before lighting, to give our prickly friends a chance to escape.

4. Check the bonfire again thoroughly just before lighting. Even if you have taken into account the other steps, there is no harm in triple checking! You might even find other animals, including amphibians and reptiles, using the bonfire for shelter.

5. Light your bonfire from one side, to give any wildlife that you may have missed, one final chance of escape.

Grace Johnson, Hedgehog Officer for Hedgehog Street, said: “Bonfire Night is a calendar event for many people, but unfortunately, bonfires are extremely dangerous for hedgehogs as they look like a perfect readymade home to hibernate in. They have no idea of the danger they’re in.

“Following these top tips is an easy and effective way to help protect hedgehogs from this threat, along with any other wildlife that might also be in the pyre.”

Helen Lewis, Managing Director at Barratt and David Wilson Homes, said: “It’s extremely important to us when building new communities that we’re also creating a space for wildlife to thrive. 

“We hope these vital tips can help to keep local hedgehog populations stable.”

For more ways to help hedgehogs, especially as they prepare for hibernation, visit hedgehogstreet.org.