It is an iconic symbol of British wildlife and has even been voted Britain’s favorite wild animal several times.
But according to a worrying new report, the hedgehog is in danger of extinction.
The number of hedgehogs has declined worldwide so far, from an abundant species to an endangered species.
The latest update of the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species also found that more than a third (38 percent) of the world’s tree species are at risk of extinction.
The number of lovely creatures immortalized as the character Mrs Tiggywinkle by Beatrix Potter is plummeting – with causes for their decline including ‘human pressure’ and loss of habitat, experts say.
And experts say migratory birds that visit the British coast, including the gray plover and dunlin, are seeing their conservation status deteriorate.
The conservation status of the Western European hedgehog on the Red List has deteriorated from least concern to near threatened. This means that if the situation continues to deteriorate, the species could be put on the global extinction list.
The IUCN said the species’ numbers are likely to have declined in more than half of the countries where it lives, including Britain and Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Belgium, the Netherlands, Germany and Austria – with a national decline of 16 to 33. percent in the last ten years.
It is an iconic symbol of British wildlife and has even been voted Britain’s favorite wild animal several times. But according to a worrying new report, the hedgehog is in danger of extinction
In Britain, spiny mammals have suffered a historic decline.
And a 2022 study found that numbers in rural areas had fallen by as much as 75 percent since 2000, although in urban areas the previously declining population had begun to show signs of recovery.
The IUCN experts said hedgehogs are suffering from increasing human pressures, including increasingly intensive agriculture that is damaging their rural habitat, roads and urban development.
Dr. Abi Gazzard, program officer at the IUCN Small Mammal Specialist Group, said: ‘Regional and national action is essential to support hedgehog populations, through initiatives such as ‘Hedgehog Street’ in Britain and ‘Danmarks Pindsvin’ in Denmark.”
Hedgehog Street is a campaign by the People’s Trust for Endangered Species and the British Hedgehog Preservation Society.
It encourages people to support and help once-ordinary garden visitors with simple acts such as putting holes in their fence to help them get around.
Commenting on the report, Nida Al-Fulaij, CEO of People’s Trust for Endangered Species (PTES), said recent research has shown that hedgehog populations are still struggling in rural Britain, despite signs of recovery in urban areas.
“The news that European hedgehogs have been reclassified by the IUCN as Near Threatened worldwide raises the alarm for this beloved native species throughout their range,” she said.
In Britain, spiny mammals have suffered a historic decline. And a 2022 study found that rural numbers had fallen by as much as 75 percent since 2000, although in urban areas previously declining population numbers were beginning to show signs of recovery.
Fay Vass, chief executive of the British Hedgehog Preservation Society (BHPS), urged the public to become a ‘hedgehog champion’ by supporting the species with a range of actions throughout the year.
“I would encourage everyone to help where they can, as small, simple actions can have a huge impact on habitat availability, connectivity and quality, which is crucial for their long-term survival,” she said.
The majority of threatened trees are on islands, where they are at high risk from deforestation for development and agriculture, invasive species, pests and diseases, and sea level rise.
The IUCN Red List now includes 166,061 species, of which 46,337 are threatened with extinction.