Wild Tattenhall

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Tattenhall Wildlife Group (TWiG) has filmed two hedgehogs in a dance that lasted for three hours; it is unclear what they were doing, but it may well be mating behaviour!

Hedgehogs have been voted as one of the most popular wild animals in the UK, and it is quite understandable , as they are very cute! They have been mentioned in literature from Shakespeare to Beatrix Potter, Mrs Tiggy Winkle is now a common name for them! Their name comes from the fact that that they roam hedgerows looking for food , and make a piggy grunting noise! Babies are called 'hoglets' !

It is very good to see that hedgehogs are present in and around our village. Since 2000 there has been a possible 97% decrease in their numbers, it is hard to count them as they are nocturnal, and they roam over 2 miles, a number of different hedgehogs may visit your garden over several nights. So it is hard to do a proper count. However roadkill are responsible for 150,000 deaths a year, and this combined with the decrease in insects ,and the loss of habitat from intensive farming, means that their numbers are decreasing rapidly. Another factor is that the main predator numbers have increased ~the badger seems to be the only animal that will eat a hedgehog and with 5000 spines, I wonder how they do this! However, they have also been found to coexist in the same area especially where there is an ample supply of food, slugs, insects, worms, caterpillars.

They are known as the gardener's friend because of their diet and they do no harm to the garden. It is urban areas and gardens both public and private, that may prove to be the saving of the hedgehog. They need small holes in fences, no bigger than a CD to wander through gardens, and eat all your pests! In dry times like now, if you want to encourage them, they need shallow sauces of water, not milk, they are in fact lactose intolerant! Pet food is also very acceptable to them in times of severe weather conditions when finding their own food is difficult.

They hibernate from November to March, and make nests to breed in mounds of leaves and garden waste, so take care when moving piles of these around the garden.

So, next time you hear strange snuffling, grunting noises in the garden take a torch and investigate!