Sir, – John Devlin (May 29th) raises the status of hedgehogs in the suburbs. The fact that he has not seen any is, in itself, no cause for concern. These nocturnal mammals are thought to visit between 30 per cent and 40 per cent of gardens, both urban and rural. I assume he has searched for this shy animal at night, as daytime sightings often indicate an individual that is unwell.
As for his query as to what the National Parks and Wildlife Service is doing about the plight of hedgehogs in suburbia, the real question is what are suburbanites doing? Have they ensured poisonous slug pellets are not used in the area? Have they maintained “wild” areas in their gardens to encourage wildlife? Are log piles and leaf piles left in place through the winter, to provide hibernation sites for hedgehogs? Have they left gaps in fences between gardens to allow hedgehog movement?
Ask not what the National Parks and Wildlife Service can do for us but what we can do for ourselves. – Yours, etc,
PAT MULLEN,
Kilerley, Co Louth.
Sir, – People should not forget that hedgehogs do an excellent job eating slugs. – Yours, etc,
JOY EVANS,
Bray,
Co Wicklow.
Sir, – John Devlin has not seen a suburban hedgehog in 20 years and I bet he hasn’t seen an unwalled garden either! Therein lies the problem. – Yours, etc,
DANIEL R COLLINS,
Rathgar,
Dublin 14.