Abstract/Summary

Urban-dwelling wildlife face a wide range of challenges including, but not limited to, habitat loss, habitat fragmentation and the mortality risks associated with roads, domestic animals and human activities. Nonetheless, urban areas can provide critical refuge for a range of species, including some of conservation concern; detailed knowledge of how these species persist in human-modified landscapes is necessary for the development of sound conservation strategies. The West European hedgehog (Erinaceus europaeus) is a small (<1.5kg), nocturnal, hibernating mammal that has declined markedly in Britain over recent decades most prominently within rural landscapes, and is nowadays more commonly found within urban habitats, including in residential gardens. Consequently, householders are urged by conservation groups to make their gardens more ‘hedgehog friendly’ by, for example, increasing accessibility through garden boundaries, providing artificial refugia and/or giving supplemental food. Current understanding of garden use by hedgehogs, the extent to which such ‘hedgehog-friendly’ initiatives have been adopted by householders and their subsequent impacts is, however, limited. Therefore, the current study aimed to quantify key factors relating to habitat use by urban hedgehogs and conservation actions within gardens. First, 28 hedgehogs were radio/GPS tracked in a residential area in Reading, UK, and the data were used in combination with GIS and householder-supplied information to quantify habitat selection, the number of gardens visited and factors affecting the extent of individual garden use. Second, hedgehog occupancy in gardens during a hibernation period was monitored using footprint tunnels and assessed against within- and outside-garden variables. Finally, two online questionnaire surveys were undertaken to explore (i) factors affecting the use of artificial refuges (nest boxes) in gardens, and (ii) householder engagement with the ‘hedgehog highways’ campaign which aims to increase connectivity between gardens; collectively, >10,000 responses were received from householders in the UK. Overall, it is evident that householders have the capacity to positively influence hedgehog activity patterns in gardens via the provision of key resources such as food and nesting opportunities, but that other biotic and abiotic factors also play a role. However, householder engagement with some conservation activities can be strongly impacted by, e.g., the need to coordinate with neighbours. Future studies are therefore needed to identify mechanisms to overcome such impediments to maximise the number of participating households. Fundamentally, future research needs to focus on quantifying the impacts, potentially both positive and negative, of conservation activities on hedgehog populations.