People marked Hedgehog Awareness Week in the Lorton Valley with a workshop to make feeding stations.
The workshop, run by the Melbreak Hedgehog Recovery Group, was the first in a series to be held and was attended by 15 people.
The workshop, the first of a series, was attended by 15 people. It was led by Tanya St Pierre who, as chair of the Melbreak Communities Wildlife Group, initiated the Hedgehog Recovery Project.
She also rescues, fosters and rehabilitates hedgehogs and hoglets in her spare time.
Based on recommendations from the British Hedgehog Preservation Society and RSPCA, the project aims to increase the hedgehog population locally and involve and encourage people of all ages in the community to engage in supporting wildlife and nature.
As well as enjoying chatting and the practicalities and fun of making the feeding stations, which are designed to protect food from weather and deter other animals, the group learnt what food to supply, to place the feeder in an open area overnight – removing it during the day – and to change its location regularly after about five nights.
The British Hedgehog Preservation Society encourages supplementary feeding for hedgehogs in the wild, especially during times of unseasonal weather or when natural food sources are scarce.
Tanya said: “Providing a hedgehog feeding station in your garden is a great way to help hedgehogs – and there will now be 15 more in local gardens.
“Hedgehogs love to eat beetles, caterpillars and earthworms, but the best food for supplementation is kitten kibble, along with a shallow dish of fresh water. It’s very important NEVER to feed bread, milk, peanuts or mealworms to hedgehogs, as these are harmful to them.”
The group also learned about other ways to support hedgehogs, such as making log and leaf piles and leaving wild edges in the garden, especially around hedges, which help to provide a natural food source and shelter.
Hedgehogs can cover over two kilometres a night and creating hedgehog highways – 13cm square gaps in fences – allows hedgehogs to travel safely away from roads and forage in connected habitats.
Providing an approved type of hedgehog house is an excellent way to help and protect hibernating hedgehogs, as well as providing shelter for hedgehogs and hoglets through the year.
Stopping any use of pesticides, slug pellets and herbicides, providing escape routes out of ponds, keeping garden netting and litter out of the way of hedgehogs and checking for wildlife before strimming long grass or forking over compost heaps, are all easy and essential ways to remove hazards to hedgehogs.
For more information, contact Tanya via email at tanya.stpierre@outlook.com
The group’s next event, Hedgehog Homes & Highways, is on Thursday June 19, 7.30pm to 9pm at Yew Tree Hall, Lorton. Suggested donation £3. All welcome.
The Melbreak Hedgehog Recovery Project, has been jointly funded by Melbreak Communities and Cumberland Council and is part of the Melbreak Wildlife Group, an initiative of the Melbreak Communities.
