Country Matters
By The Hodge
“He lies like a hedgehog rolled
up the wrong way,
Tormenting himself with his
prickles.”
Thomas Hood, 1798-1845 - Her Dream
I find that as I get
older I get more like the character in the television series One Foot in the Grave – Victor Meldrew.
My Victor moment last week came when
BBC Radio 4’s Today programme did a
story on the decline of the hedgehog. Away from electioneering issues for a
change, I pricked up my ears, (sorry, unintentional pun), in anticipation of
something interesting at last.
The piece was
introduced by explaining – in rather generalised round numbers – that
populations of hedge pigs had declined by 50% in rural areas and 33% in urban
areas. The story was coming from a wildlife rescue centre in Wiltshire, near
Salisbury.
Given those ballpark
figures by the interviewer, the woman who ran the centre where they were being
overwhelmed with hedgehogs, ignored the decline in rural numbers and instead
lambasted gardeners for blocking up gaps in fences which restricted the
creatures’ ability to move from one property to another.
Victor Meldrew rose to
the surface in a flash.
There was no mention
of why numbers in the countryside were falling so dramatically. Nor any
possible explanation as to why the gap-filling was causing hedgehog numbers to
decline either – perhaps she thought frustrated hedgehog couples were prevented
from sexual dalliances by being stuck either side of a fence!
Well, let me explain
the real reasons which the BBC failed to elicit. Firstly, the massive decline
in rural numbers is directly linked to the growth in numbers of badgers. Badger
populations have increased dramatically since the 1970s and they are the only
predator of hedgehogs being the only creature strong enough and determined enough
to get through the prickly-one’s defences. The evidence for badger predation
can be seen quite commonly in the countryside when you find the flattened skin
of a hedgehog where all the internal organs and muscle have been devoured. It’s
not a pretty thought but it is fact.
Those in more urban
areas – i.e. our gardens - where badgers tend not to visit, may well be
restricted in their movement by walls and fences but that doesn’t account for
the decline. Hedgehogs (like badgers) are nocturnal and travel about their
territory quite extensively. One of the main killers of hedgehogs are our vehicles
on the roads at night, not being driven with ‘due care and attention’. The
hedgehog is no match for the wheels of a car or van so please, do take care
when driving after dark and don’t assume because there’s little traffic about
that you don’t need to drive carefully at all times. Look out for these little
creatures and take action to avoid hitting them when you see them.
The other action you
can take to help them, (and to encourage them to help you), is to avoid using
slug pellets in your garden. Hedgehogs eat slugs which is why we should do all
we can to encourage them but if they eat slugs that have eaten slug pellets,
they themselves are slowly poisoned. So if you have hedgehogs about, bin the
blue pellets and use a beer trap or something similarly less lethal instead and
let the hedgehog help you.
Vicor Meldrew has
returned to his box….
June is the month of
the major agricultural event in our region – the Royal Three Counties Show
being held at Malvern from Friday 16th to Sunday 18th
June. This is Gloucestershire’s county show and one of the most important rural
events in the country. There’s a whole host of interesting and entertaining
activities taking place to suit all ages and interests – far too many and
diverse to list here – so check out the details at www.royalthreecounties.co.uk and
I hope to see you there. If you haven’t visited the show for some time – do
come along – you’ll be amazed by how much it has changed and improved.
