Tayside hedgehog numbers in decline

Tayside has seen a huge decline in hedgehog numbers, a local charity has revealed. The Wormit Hedgehog Care Centre has taken in 98 of the prickly creatures this year — up from 52 in 2013, but still far below the 322 brought in 2008. Numbers have dipped gradually every year since then, with 268 rescued in 2009, 228 in 2010 and 103 in 2011, as well as 102 in 2012. Sandy Boyd, who runs the centre with his wife Alice, said the weather had a large part to play in the declining numbers. He said: “We’re not only rescuing fewer hedgehogs, but we’re seeing fewer of them in general. Hedgehogs are listed as an endangered species, after UK numbers dipped from an estimated 30 million in the 1950s to around 1.5 million now.

Source: Evening Telegraph, 29 Oct 2014
http://www.eveningtelegraph.co.uk/news/local/dundee/tayside-hedgehog-nu…