Bonfire Night: Hedgehogs living in pyres are in danger

This Bonfire Night, Essex homebuilder Barratt and David Wilson Homes is encouraging residents to help their prickly nocturnal neighbours with a series of top tips to keep native hedgehogs safe.

The developer, in collaboration with nationwide campaign Hedgehog Street - run by wildlife charities The British Hedgehog Preservation Society and People’s Trust for Endangered Species - is encouraging households to watch out for hedgehogs and other small animals that may take refuge in unlit bonfires, and to take steps to ensure their safety before any bonfires are lit.

Danger - Hedgehogs are in danger on Bonfire Night as they mistake pyres for ready-made homes (Image: Cate Barrow)

Grace Johnson, Hedgehog Officer for Hedgehog Street, said: “Bonfire Night is a calendar event for many people, but unfortunately bonfires are extremely dangerous for hedgehogs as they look like a perfect readymade home to a hibernate in. They have no idea of the danger they’re in.

“Following these top tips is an easy and effective way to help protect hedgehogs from this threat, along with any other wildlife that might also be in the pyre.”

Barratt and David Wilson Homes has issued a five-point plan based on advice from experts at Hedgehog Street to help keep hedgehogs safe this Bonfire Night.

Five tips to keep hedgehogs safe on bonfire night:

1. Stop – do you need to have a bonfire? Can you attend a community event, or mark the occasion in a more wildlife-friendly way? The fewer bonfires there are, the fewer wildlife casualties there will be.
2. If you decide to have a bonfire, build it at the last minute to stop any hedgehogs moving in. Building your bonfire on the day of lighting can help reduce the risk to hedgehogs and other wildlife.
3. Move the entire bonfire pile to clear ground just before lighting, to give our prickly friends a chance to escape.
4. Check the bonfire again thoroughly just before lighting. Even if you have taken into account the other steps, there is no harm in triple checking! You might even find other animals including amphibians and reptiles using the bonfire for shelter.
5. Light your bonfire from one side, to give any wildlife that you may have missed, one final chance of escape.

According to the State of Britain’s Hedgehogs 2022 report, rural hedgehog populations have dropped by up to 75 per cent in some parts of the country since 2000, and although urban hedgehogs appear to be faring slightly better, they all still need help.

Support - 'Hedgehog Highways' help give hedgehogs safe spaces to travel through gardens and neighbourhoods (Image: Christopher Morgan)

Hedgehogs have been classified as Vulnerable to extinction on the Red List for Britain’s Mammals (2020), and the reasons behind their decline include habitat loss, fragmentation and agricultural intensification.

Barratt and David Wilson Homes is supporting nature and wildlife at its developments by creating wildlife friendly gardens, hedgehog homes and ‘Hedgehog Highways’ – small gaps in or under garden fences or walls.

Tom Wright, Managing Director at Barratt and David Wilson Homes Eastern Counties, said: “It’s extremely important to us when building new communities that we’re also creating a space for wildlife to thrive.

“We hope these vital tips can help to keep local hedgehog populations stable.”

For more information about nearby developments, visit the websites at Barratt Homes in Essex or David Wilson Homes in Essex.

For more ways to help hedgehogs, especially as they prepare for hibernation, visit www.hedgehogstreet.org.