Landscape-scale proposals can help Britain’s much-loved hedgehog

If you think about it, it’s obvious that hedgehogs don’t like big, sprawling fields. Because, as their name suggests, they really do prefer hedges.

And it seems that they don’t really mind if the hedges are in the countryside, separating crops from roads, or in our towns and cities, where they mark the boundaries of our gardens, play areas and parks.

Shockingly, Britain’s hedgehog population has shrunk dramatically since the 1950s – by as much as 97%. The decline has been so great that in 2020 they were classed as “vulnerable to extinction” in the UK.

In a debate at Westminster in July 2015 MP Matt Sutton said: “The problems that hedgehogs face are numerous. It is difficult to point to one factor as the sole reason for the population’s decline. That is partly a reflection on how varied their habitats can be.

“Modern farming practices have been blamed, including the use of pesticides that kill hedgehogs’ prey or potentially poison the hedgehogs themselves. A loss of habitat has similarly been pointed at—modern agricultural practices use larger fields and fewer hedgerows—and of course there are questions about the impact of climate change on hedgehogs’ hibernating habits.”

The 2016 report State of Nature, compiled by a collaboration between UK conservation and research organisations including the National Trust, the Wildlife Trusts, Friends of the Earth and the World Wide Fund for Nature, says: “Hedgehogs have declined massively in farmland, so sensitively managed wildlife-friendly gardens have now become increasingly important for this much-loved species.”

The Escrick Park Estate’s long-standing commitment to protecting and enhancing hedgerows, and accompanying field margins, has been seen to help a wide range of species, not just hedgehogs.

But there is further hope for the hedgehog, as studies have shown they can thrive in urban areas as much as in rural ones.

Indeed, the Conservation Strategy for West-European Hedgehog (Erinaceus europaeus) in the United Kingdom (2015-2025) says: “There are huge opportunities for new build developments that improve the status of hedgehog populations right across the UK.”

Particularly useful, it says, is the landscape-scale connectivity that can be produced during large-scale developments.

In its Masterplan for Heronby, the Escrick Park Estate is committed to respecting the ecology of the site and to a biodiversity net gain of 10 per cent: as it stands, the current Masterplan reflects an anticipated on-site biodiversity net gain of 15 to 20%

Among the measures included in the masterplan are wildlife corridors to link existing habitats with new green spaces, such as woodland, and the surrounding countryside. Where possible, new woodland and hedgerows will also be created, and garden boundaries will be accessible to our spikey friends – surely music to the hedgehogs’ ears.