Roadkill

Sadly, for many of us the sight of a squashed hedgehog by the side of the road is a familiar one. Perhaps surprisingly, deaths from traffic accidents are not currently thought to be a major factor in the decline of our hedgehog population. Indeed, seeing hedgehogs squashed on the roads in your area is probably a good sign that there is a healthy local population.

Monitoring hedgehogs using roadkill

Recording these sightings is important for monitoring hedgehog populations, as long as it is done in a standardised way.

PTES runs the Mammals on Roads survey, a nationwide survey of mammal sightings along single-carriageways that takes place from 1st July to 30th September. It is the only survey of its kind in the UK.

Findings from the survey have already alerted us to the drastic decline in hedgehogs and was the motivation behind Hedgehog Street and our wider campaign.

We are always badly in need of people to take part in Mammals on Roads.

You can take part by requesting a survey pack (contact david.wembridge@ptes.org) or by downloading our fantastic free app…

1. Download the free app for iPhone or Android
2. The app cleverly uses the GPS on your smartphone to automatically map the route whilst you are driving – make sure you get a passenger to do the recording for you!
3. Tap the cartoon of the mammal you see. This survey is the most important source of reliable information about the national hedgehog decline