Hedgehog “Definitely A Friend Of Man”

Press, Volume CI, Issue 29984, 20 November 1962, Page 20

Hedgehog “Definitely A Friend Of Man”

The hedgehog is defined as a friend of man and not a pest by a correspondent, in a letter to “The Press.” In support the correspondent quotes from a paper by R. E. Brockie recording his observations on the food of the hedgehog in New Zealand, published in 1959.

Another correspondent had asked on what grounds the hedgehog was branded as a pest Dr. K. A. Wodzicki, in his book, "Introduced Mammals of New Zealand.” says that damage to wild and domestic bird life, and occasionally to seedlings, are the main items reported on the debit side of the hedgehog. His book was published in 1950.

“M.M.” says that this information, which was quoted in "The Press,” appears now to be out-of-date in the light of Mr Brockie's paper. According to the excerpts quoted by the correspondent, Mr Brockie examined 10 hedgehog stomachs and 90 droppings mainly from the Wellington province. Mr Brockie reported that 20 of the droppings examined in this study were collected in areas where, and during the season, when skylarks, pheasants and pipits were nesting, but no chips of eggshell w’ere found in the faeces. Some caged hedgehogs were offered domestic hens’ eggs, but they made no attempts to break them open or to eat them.

Even though eggs were broken before their eyes and the animals readily ate the contents, they never learnt to smash them open themselves although given every opportunity. Fragments of shell were frequently seen in the droppings from the animals that had eaten broken fowls’ eggs, and had any been present in the faeces of wild animals, they would probably not have been overlooked. Mr Brockie said that odd reports of hedgehogs attacking birds’ nests in this country had been published

(Bull, 1953. Wodzicki, 1950. p. 60) but more intensive investigations on game birds revealed that these isolated incidents had a negligible effect on those bird populations studied. From his own observations. Mr Brockie found that the main food items in suburban areas are slugs and millipedes. although snails are frequently eaten. The main food in pasture land are slugs and moth caterpillars while in the sand dunes snails, millipedes and frogs are the main foods. A substantial amount of plant matter is ingested with the food, but it appears that small leaves and buds of clover are the only plant material intentionally sought. Millipedes and slugs are eaten throughout the year, snails most frequently during the spring and moth larvae most frequently during autumn. Mr Brockie believes that these results probably apply more or less to similar sreas in New Zealand also. “From this careful scientific work the hedgehog emerges definitely as friend of man. not as pest,” says “M.M”