As I mentioned on the Hedgehog Rehabilitation Practice research page, hedgehog numbers have been decreasing over recent decades, whilst increasing in admissions to rehabilitation centres. Many of these admissions are juveniles that are often retained in captivity during the hibernation period, which typically lasts from November to April within the UK. After which rehabilitated hedgehogs are released back into the wild.

The successful rehabilitation of hedgehogs should allow them to be released in a condition that allows them to survive equally as well as wild individuals, for example, with the ability to recognise appropriate food sources and higher risk environments, as well as being able to select mates and reproduce and as a result continue to contribute to the wider population. As such post release monitoring of wildlife is essential to evaluate rehabilitation success, yet this practice is relatively uncommon. Where this has been investigated research has found that, as well as experiencing stress in captivity, reintroduction stress can occur, as well as increased mortality risks and altered ranging behaviour upon release. These issues can be exaggerated in juvenile animals that are brought into a captive environment at a young age, as they have not had the same learning opportunities as their adult counterparts.

This study aims to contribute towards our knowledge gap within this area by monitoring the fine scale behaviour of juvenile hedgehogs when released in the Spring, in comparison to hedgehogs that have spent the winter in the wild. We hope that the research will contribute to rehabilitation practices and help us to understand how we can maximise the chances of successful reintroduction to the wild.

We hope to have some results to share with you after the next field season this spring, so please check back here for updates!