Making Hedgehog Highways Happen

_{PUBLISHED 9/12/24}

Making Hedgehog Highways Happen 

Another month, another success for our Native Species Conservation Committee!  In the last few weeks, the team have been busy helping to protect some of the spikiest native species at the Park: the wild hedgehogs staff noticed visiting the grounds at night. 

The number of hedgehogs in Sussex has declined by 25% in the last 10 years according to the Sussex Wildlife Trust, so Drusillas feels fortunate that this some of this special species visit the Park, and want to do everything we can to support them. Staff had seen that a few hedgehogs had fallen into the area underneath some of our rides here, including the Rainforest Carousel and the Hippopotobus. As these attractions have steep sides, once the hedgehogs had fallen in, they could not get out! A similar problem occurs in steep sided ponds or cattle grids in rural areas. 

As one of the UKs most beloved native species, staff were more then happy to get stuck in to help with the issue. The Committee quickly came up with a solution to help the hedgehogs: building and putting in ramps to help the hedgehogs get out! The estate team created them quickly, ranging from simple ramps, to those with steps, and these were installed a week later:

The Native Wildlife Committee team have set out camera traps to see if the ramps get used before the hedgehogs enter hibernation, so watch this space! 

If you would like to help hedgehogs at home, please visit the Hedgehog Street website to learn the simple things you can do to encourage them in your area and help them thrive https://www.hedgehogstreet.org/help-hedgehogs/