In my last post, I wrote about the Bracknell Forest Biodiversity Action Plan. This is the first of a series of posts on the species mentioned in that plan that make Binfield their home. One of the cutest of these creatures is the hedgehog. The UK’s only spiny mammal is popular with gardeners because its diet includes beetles, slugs, caterpillars, millipedes and earwigs.
They used to be a common sight across the UK, but their numbers have declined from around 30 million in the 1970s to about 1.5 million today. However, they appear to be doing better in some urban and semi-urban areas. Thanks to everyone who has let us know about hedgehog sightings, it seems that Binfield may be one of these areas. Hedgehogs have repeatedly been seen this year in a number of locations around the village, such as the Red Rose allotments, the Wicks Green area, and Benetfield Road.
Hedgehogs hibernate between November and March to conserve energy. If you see a hedgehog at this time of year then it could be in trouble. Similarly, hedgehogs are nocturnal creatures and a hedgehog out in broad daylight may also be in trouble. The websites of the British Hedgehog Preservation Society (https://www.britishhedgehogs.org.uk/) and Harper Asprey Wildlife Rescue (https://www.harperaspreywildliferescue.co.uk/) provide more information on how to see if a hedgehog needs help and what to do.
One thing that we can all do between April and October is put out food and water for hedgehogs. Hedgehog food is available from garden centres, but they also like meaty cat or dog food. You can also buy or build a hedgehog feeding station so that larger animals, including pets, can’t get at the food and the hedgehog can feed in a protected space.
The specific action in the Biodiversity Action Plan is to increase the number of gardens connected as part of Hedgehog Street (https://www.hedgehogstreet.org/). All you have to do is make sure that there is at least one 13cm x 13 cm hole in your garden boundary. You can even get a durable label from the People’s Trust for Endangered Species or British Hedgehog Preservation Society to let your friends and neighbours know what you’ve done, and to make sure that the hole doesn’t get accidently blocked up.
Please continue to let us know if you see a hedgehog or improve the accessibility of your garden for hedgehogs. It would be great if you would also submit this information to The Big Hedgehog Map (https://bighedgehogmap.org/). We will summarise the information on new garden links and pass it on to Bracknell Forest Council.