Wildlife Welfare

Wild Hedgehog Road Mortality Prevention

Road traffic kills an estimated 100,000 UK hedgehogs annually, making road mortality one of the biggest welfare challenges for the species.

Key Facts

Hedgehogs freeze rather than flee when threatened, making them vulnerable to vehicles
An estimated 100,000 hedgehog road deaths occur in the UK each year
Road mortality is concentrated on A-roads and urban roads during nocturnal foraging
Wildlife warning signs and road speed reductions have limited but some documented effect
Hedgehog-friendly garden corridors reduce need to cross roads for foraging

Welfare Considerations

Road deaths represent an enormous welfare burden for hedgehogs - each death involves trauma and suffering. Connecting gardens to reduce road-crossing necessity, and careful driving at night in hedgehog areas, are the most practical individual contributions to reducing this toll.

What You Can Do

Drive carefully and slowly on rural roads at night especially during spring and autumn
Create hedgehog highway connections through your garden fence to reduce road crossing need
Report hedgehog road casualties to local wildlife groups to help identify hotspot roads