The Day of the Hedgehog
This was the first UK summit on hedgehogs in a decade, with leading hedgehog experts discussing the pressures facing Britain’s favourite wild animal in the 21st century. The Day of the Hedgehog was organised by People’s Trust for Endangered Species (PTES) and the British Hedgehog Preservation Society (BHPS).
Why host a summit about hedgehogs?
Despite being voted as Britain’s National Species in a 2013 BBC Wildlife Magazine poll, our native hedgehog is declining as fast as tigers in the wild.
To save the hedgehog, we must understand it’s secretive lifestyle. The event was designed to be a platform for knowledge-sharing from researchers who spend their working lives nose-to-nose with these beasts. The day also provided a platform for some of the 37 000 Hedgehog Champions to meet and share ideas. We also launched a ten year national conservation strategy and The State of Britain’s Hedgehogs 2015.
Who presented at The Day of the Hedgehog?
- Dr Phil Baker, Lecturer, University of Reading
- Dr Simone Bullion, Senior Conservation Adviser, Suffolk Wildlife Trust
- Henry Johnson, Hedgehog Officer, Hedgehog Street
- Dr Pat Morris, President of BHPS and former Head of Zoology, Royal Holloway University and pre-eminent hedgehog expert
- Carly Pettett, researcher, WildCRU, University of Oxford
- Dr Nigel Reeve, former Head of Ecology, Royal Parks
- Simon Thompson, Hedgehog Officer, Warwickshire Wildlife Trust
- Becky Walton, one of more than 34,000 volunteer Hedgehog Street Champions
- Hugh Warwick, hedgehog-loving ecologist and author
- Ben Williams, hedgehog researcher, University of Reading
- Dr Richard Yarnell, Lecturer, Nottingham Trent University
Photo gallery from The Day of the Hedgehog
