Hedgehogs in the Garden

I had noticed signs of hedgehog in our garden the other day so David fetched his head torch last night at about 11.15 pm and peered out. Almost immediately he could hear rustling sounds from the direction of the back fence, but there right in front of him, under the birds' coconut feeder, was the hedgehog you see in the photo. I followed David out and took a few quick photos. My camera seemed to find it difficult to focus in the dark, so here you have one of the photos I uploaded (above) and one, originally equally dark, that I ran through Photoshop. The colours are a bit strange, but at least there is no mistaking the fact that the creature is a hedgehog. I failed to see the other hedgehog(s) by the back fence: there just wasn't enough light, but how exciting to think that our garden is being visited by these lovely mammals. 

Some of you will know that the folk at Suffolk Wildlife Trust (and we are both members) are wanting to make Ipswich the most hedgehog-friendly town in the UK with the help of their Ipswich Hedgehog Project.

There are various things such as the provision of bowls of water or 'hedgehog highways', hedgehog-sized holes in fences that link one garden to the next, that will not only encourage these creatures to live in our urban and suburban spaces, but will also help them to mate, breed and multiply. Please note that hedgehogs should not be given bread and milk.

If you would like to be involved in projects to help our hedgehogs but you do not live in Suffolk, you will find helpful information at Hedgehog Street.

As it happens (and thanks to the National Hedgehog Preservation Society), Hedgehog Awareness Week begins tomorrow. Members of the public are being asked to get involved by spreading the word, contributing funds and helping in practical ways.

P.S. There were two hedgehogs again the next night ...

Sharing today with:
Eileen at 'Viewing Nature With Eileen'

Hedgehogs and Hibernation

I saw my first hedgehog of 2014 last week when we were on the beautiful windswept island of Great Cumbrae, a ten minute ferry ride from Largs on the west coast of Scotland. The hedgehog was rootling around in a grassy bank in the grounds of the Cathedral of the Isles in Millport, the smallest cathedral in Britain.

I shall be logging the sighting on the Hedgehog Street site as part of the hibernation survey. The aim of this survey is to see if there are links between climate change and the hedgehog's hibernation patterns.

Lepidoptera: Butterfly Conservation and Hedgerow Photo Competition

The Comma, a butterfly that hibernates rather than migrates.

If you enjoy taking photographs of the wildlife that inhabits our hedgerows, you might like to enter the Belvoir Fruit Farm Hedgerow Photography Competition. The farm will donate £1 to Butterfly Conservation for every photograph entered. Be sure to read the rules before you upload, as images cannot be entered if they have appeared in public before. Your entry will earn you free membership of Butterfly Conservation.

• Wet summer affects butterfly numbers