Hedgehog

8th December 2023

Photo Credit Alexas Fotos from Pexels, CANVA

But for every trifle they are set upon me,

Sometimes like apes, that mow and chatter at me,

And after bite me; then like hedgehogs, which

Lie tumbling in my barefoot way and mount

Their pricks at my footfall.

CALIBAN, The Tempest, Act 2, Scene 2

HEDGEHOG

Hedgehogs appear 4 times in Shakespeare’s works, in a Macbeth, a Midsummer Nights Dream, Richard III and the Tempest. They get a bad press in Shakespeare and are associated with Urchins or evil spirits.

The European Hedgehog (Erinaceus europaeus) is a distinctive mammal of the garden and countryside with its armour of spikes. Hedgehogs are most active at night and hibernate from November to April.

Hedgehogs are priority species in the UK. Their numbers have been declining and they have been classified as Vulnerable (VU) in the IUCN Red List for British Mammals.

More Information

The British Hedgehog Preservation Society: Visit Site

Hedgehog Street: Visit Site

ZSL London Hogwatch: Visit Site

Mammal Society: Red List of British Mammals

Peoples Trust for Endangered Species: Hedgehogs

Wildlife Trusts: Hedgehog