Killer Hedgehogs

sphexx

sphexx

Likes a dare
Messages
14,819
Name
Richard
Edit My Images
No
I saw Brian May on TV yesterday campaigning for cuddly (ouch) hedgehogs … here’s a different take:
www.theguardian.com

Killing machines: humble British hedgehog causes havoc in New Zealand

Brought over by British settlers to make themselves feel more at home, the diminutive mammals are thriving - which spells doom for native wildlife
www.theguardian.com www.theguardian.com

Like so many things, it all depends … :(
 
It certainly doesn't take long to upset the balance, once an alien species introduced.
 
Round them up and ship them all back here, our hedgehog numbers have fallen drastically.
 
Jelster said:
Round them up and ship them all back here, our hedgehog numbers have fallen drastically.
Click to expand...

Actually, that’s mentioned in the article … and the obvious biosecurity implications :(. Probably a better solution might be to reduce the numbers of badgers who are likely partly responsible for the hedgehog number reduction :(.

Of course Brian May is campaigning for badgers & hedgehogs :).
 
Last edited:
sphexx said:
Probably a better solution might be to reduce the numbers of badgers who are likely partly responsible for the hedgehog number reduction :(.
Click to expand...
From the web
No new mass culls of badgers will be allowed in England after 2022, under government plans announced on Wednesday. Since 2013 more than 100,000 badgers have been killed in culls that are intended to reduce tuberculosis infections in cattle.

Obviously foxes will also take hedgehogs usually youngsters, though.
But unfortunately a lot of people seem to thing its "cute" to encourage them, and feed them. ( foxes that is)
 
I blame Roald Dahl...

But it's probably Boris or brexit's fault really... :rolleyes:
 
Cobra said:
From the web
No new mass culls of badgers will be allowed in England after 2022, under government plans announced on Wednesday. Since 2013 more than 100,000 badgers have been killed in culls that are intended to reduce tuberculosis infections in cattle.

Obviously foxes will also take hedgehogs usually youngsters, though.
But unfortunately a lot of people seem to thing its "cute" to encourage them, and feed them. ( foxes that is)
Click to expand...

Foxes have benefited from urbanisation and I guess hedgehogs have suffered from urbanisation in recent years with more hard surfaces :(.
 
Haven't seen a hedgie in the garden for years. Last time was probably 5 years ago when the cat was investigating a ball of prickles on the patio! Cut holes in the fence to make life easier for them.
 
Man's activities have oh so much to answer for :(

Unless there is some potential to relocate the NZ hedgehogs back to the UK, sadly I think they need to be culled in NZ!

On a related note in more recent times, there was that misguided private attempt at hedgehog "support" where someone introduced them to a Scottish island and they decimated the bird population. I think I recall those ones were rounded up and brought back to the mainland.
 
Nod said:
Haven't seen a hedgie in the garden for years. Last time was probably 5 years ago when the cat was investigating a ball of prickles on the patio! Cut holes in the fence to make life easier for them.
Click to expand...

I still get them coming from neighbours though my fences with gaps have been replaced mostly by 6ft solid wood ones — but my garden is very attractive to them, lots of dead wood, slugs etc and some wet places though they were a nuisance when I kept poultry (egg eating).
 
sphexx said:
Probably a better solution might be to reduce the numbers of badgers who are likely partly responsible for the hedgehog number reduction :(.
Click to expand...

Friend of mine gets hogs, badgers & deer feeding in his garden all at the same time. I'm sure badgers only eat hogs if that's all they can find.
 
Jelster said:
Friend of mine gets hogs, badgers & deer feeding in his garden all at the same time. I'm sure badgers only eat hogs if that's all they can find.
Click to expand...

Not sure about that, hedgehogs seem more tasty than earthworms to me — all that grit :(.
 
I like hedgehogs - built in toothpicks. :)

I can't remember the last time I saw a hedgehog, and that's a shame.
 
Last edited:
Cobra said:
From the web
No new mass culls of badgers will be allowed in England after 2022, under government plans announced on Wednesday. Since 2013 more than 100,000 badgers have been killed in culls that are intended to reduce tuberculosis infections in cattle.

Obviously foxes will also take hedgehogs usually youngsters, though.
But unfortunately a lot of people seem to thing its "cute" to encourage them, and feed them. ( foxes that is)
Click to expand...


Well, in that case we have a problem here..Lol. I put out cat food and a saucer of water (never milk as you'll know,of course) for a visiting hedgehog which comes near our front door most nights and I'll go across the road to the back of the 12m-wide verge by the brook and put down the meat left-overs from today's dinner for one of the foxes that patrol each evening/night. I've seen three together. I thought the only creature capable of killing a hedgehog was a badger but young hedgehogs, yes, I can see that happening.. He's really a big softie is Brian May :) During the campaign against fox hunting he was filmed ..TV.. in the main street of Stroud... 9 miles away, holding a fox cub.
 
sphexx said:
I saw Brian May on TV yesterday campaigning for cuddly (ouch) hedgehogs … here’s a different take:
www.theguardian.com

Killing machines: humble British hedgehog causes havoc in New Zealand

Brought over by British settlers to make themselves feel more at home, the diminutive mammals are thriving - which spells doom for native wildlife
www.theguardian.com www.theguardian.com

Like so many things, it all depends … :(
Click to expand...


When people think of the damage mankind causes to the planet I'm sure I'm right in thinking that it's about deforestation, polution of rivers and the air in cities, illegal hunting, the illegal pet trade,open caste-mining ...well,maybe not so much that..I'm thinking of the open scarring of landscapes) oil spills from tankers, illegal panning (usually for gold) in rainforests using arsenic, plastic waste in the oceans and rivers and the countryside etc. I feel depressed having listed all those :rolleyes: I don't think too many people give a thought to how we've re--arranged the world order of wildlife introducing alien species into foreign lands.
 
JohnC6 said:
open caste-mining ...well,maybe not so much that..I'm thinking of the open scarring of landscapes
Click to expand...
But that pretty bad if blasting the tops of mountains is open cast, as they do in Kentucky and I think most mining in Australia is open cast. Depending on what’s being mined vast amounts of water are used & polluted, etc etc :(.
 
Cobra said:
From the web
No new mass culls of badgers will be allowed in England after 2022, under government plans announced on Wednesday. Since 2013 more than 100,000 badgers have been killed in culls that are intended to reduce tuberculosis infections in cattle.

Obviously foxes will also take hedgehogs usually youngsters, though.
But unfortunately a lot of people seem to thing its "cute" to encourage them, and feed them. ( foxes that is)
Click to expand...

I know. We live in a large converted house with a very big garden. Urban foxes visit every night because a couple of our neighbours feed them, and one is hoping she can tame them ...
 
MartynK said:
and one is hoping she can tame them ...
Click to expand...
:rolleyes:

Having been in pest control / wildlife management, for a lot of years, I guess I have a different view of foxes than a lot of people.
I know how destructive they are.
And not forgetting the parasites they carry.
 
Cobra said:
:rolleyes:

Having been in pest control / wildlife management, for a lot of years, I guess I have a different view of foxes than a lot of people.
I know how destructive they are.
And not forgetting the parasites they carry.
Click to expand...

Indeed, I agree.
 
Cobra said:
:rolleyes:

Having been in pest control / wildlife management, for a lot of years, I guess I have a different view of foxes than a lot of people.
I know how destructive they are.
And not forgetting the parasites they carry.
Click to expand...
In my experience they're best fed with a frangible 50 grain .243
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top