A warning has been issued to UK households this Bonfire Night over what could be a fatal mistake for a critically endangered species if you’re planning on building a bonfire in your garden.
It’s one of the UK’s oldest traditions, with British families up and down the country choosing to remember, remember the 5th of November since that fateful day in 1605 when Guy Fawkes’ gunpowder plot to blow up Parliament was foiled.
But if you’re planning to celebrate by starting a fire in part of your garden, as is tradition, you must check for hedgehogs before you strike the first match.
According to the Wildlife Trusts, bonfires are a hedgehog killer, as the little creatures often take shelter in leaf and wood piles.
It warns: “Bonfires are very dangerous for hedgehogs as woodpiles are ideal places for shelter. Sadly many hedgehogs fall foul of unchecked bonfires and are killed because of it.”
Hedgehog numbers have fallen from a peak of 30 million in the 1950s to less than 1 million in the UK today, believed to be driven by loss of habitat, climate change, the rise of car use and changes to gardens making it more difficult for them to find places to hibernate.
To avoid killing any hedgehogs this Bonfire Night, the Trust says: “Store materials for your bonfire in a safe place – then on the day you want to light it, move them to a different patch of ground.
“Build the bonfire on the same day that you will light it. The longer it’s left for, the more likely it is that a hedgehog will wander in.
“Always place the bonfire on open ground – never on a pile of leaves as a hedgehog may be hiding underneath.
“Always check the entire bonfire for hedgehogs before lighting it. They tend to hide in the base of the centre of the pile.
“If you do find a hedgehog then move slowly and calmly. Pick it up with gardening gloves, along with any nesting material it may have been sitting in, and place it in a cardboard box lined with newspaper. Relocate the box to a safe location and release the hedgehog under a bush or log pile.”
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