The elusive bare-bellied hedgehog needs a headcount

There’s more to hedgehogs than being vibrant croquet balls in Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland and their adorable acts in certain Hollywood animated movies. Hedgehogs play important roles in the ecosystem with their distinct ecology, dietary habits, and behaviour; they’re considered ecological indicators.

They feed on soil invertebrates, so a significant decline in hedgehogs implies the quality of the environment has greatly decreased. Their roles as both prey and predator are significant for the ecological balance of the arid dry regions in which they occur.

Consider this: being an omnivore, they relish insects and can chomp down up to 40 insects in an hour. It is no surprise, then, that they are considered a farmer’s best friend, playing the part of a natural pest control with military precision. Despite their spiky exterior, they can satiate the hunger of grassland, scrubland and desert predators such as the Indian fox, jackal, and mongoose.

Little-known habitat specialist

Characterised by the abundance of small spines covering their entire body, excluding the face, legs, and underbelly, as well as their pig-like snout, hedgehogs are classified under the order Eulipotyphla and family Erinaceidae, and are found in Asia, Africa, and Europe. There are three species of hedgehogs in India: the Indian long-eared or collared hedgehog (Hemiechinus collaris); the Indian hedgehog (Paraechinus micropus); and the...

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