Sadly, our much-loved hedgehogs are threatened, having undergone considerable population declines in recent decades. To reverse this trend, we need to remove the threats they face and put in place practical conservation measures. But before we can do this effectively we need to understand where and why hedgehogs are struggling. That’s why BHPS and PTES, in partnership with Nottingham Trent University, Zoological Society of London, Mammal Web, London HogWatch and Durham University, have launched a new National Hedgehog Monitoring Programme (NHMP).

What is the National Hedgehog Monitoring Programme?

The NHMP is an exciting new pilot project, that will, for the first time, produce robust hedgehog population estimates. This new survey will tell us how many hedgehogs there are, as well as where they are present.  Monitoring numbers can give us warning if the population is in trouble. We’ll also look at regional and habitat differences in hedgehog populations, to identify what factors impact them.

With this knowledge, we will make effective conservation plans, so that we can reverse the decline of this iconic species.

Want to get involved?

Volunteer partner organisations are coordinating surveys in their local area, in parks, gardens and more rural areas, forming regional hubs to recruit volunteers who will put out cameras, and then collect them after 30 days. The cameras will capture images of hedgehogs and other animals, which we will analyse to understand how we can better help hedgehogs.

Before the data can be analysed, all the images with hedgehogs (or other species of interest) will need to be identified – and we’ll be looking for lots of volunteers to help us with this.

The images from year 1 have been uploaded to mammalweb.org, and we need you to help us classify the animals which can be seen in them. You just need to sign up for a MammalWeb account and select the NHMP project to classify.

You can find out more about how the project will work and how you can get involved here.