Road mortality is a significant cause of hedgehog population decline. Targeted infrastructure solutions at known hotspots can dramatically reduce individual welfare harm.
Road strike kills hedgehogs — a natural anti-predator defensive response that is ineffective against vehicles. The animal curls up as approaching headlights trigger its defence response, placing it in the direct path of the vehicle. Death is typically rapid but the strike itself causes acute trauma. For a species whose population has declined by over 50% since 2000, each individual mortality contributes to population-level welfare harm by removing breeding adults from a slowly reproducing species. Physical infrastructure solutions — underpasses, road margins management — provide permanent passive protection at specific locations. Behaviour change campaigns encouraging nighttime care when driving in known hedgehog areas are a complementary low-cost intervention.