Report from George Markie
The Hoggy Paddlers Hedgehogs Swim To Beat Cull
Mike Merritt Exclusive in the Sunday Mail, 14 th July 2002
INTREPID hedgehogs may have escaped a cull by swimming five miles to freedom.
Around 5000 of the spiky creatures faced certain death on North and South Uist because they were decimating populations of rare birds.
But scientists have now discovered a number of the threatened hedgehogs on nearby Harris, where they can't be touched.
The mammals' great escape has astonished animal experts, who say they must have swam the Sound of Harris.
Others may have crossed by sneaking on to a ferry, or may even have been smuggled to safety by animal lovers.
Last week, the government wildlife watchdog, Scottish Natural Heritage, postponed the planned cull on the Uists, but insisted it has not been cancelled.
They admitted there are no plans to cull the hedgehogs living on Harris and Lewis, even though their numbers have boomed.
An islander introduced four hedgehogs to Uist in 1974 to help control slugs and snails in his garden.
As their numbers escalated, so did the threat to wading birds such as dunlin, lapwing, redshank and snipe. Balranald Nature Reserve is particularly under threat. Under an EC directive, SNH is obliged to protect rare birds.
A spokesman for the wildlife watchdog said: "Our concern is the impact on the bird populations in the Uists.
"Any decision made over the hedgehogs there will not affect those on other islands.
"We are aware that Lewis and Harris have significant hedgehog populations but they are in not such a sensitive or confined area as in the Uists."
Animal rights groups have warned that SNH could face legal action if its board agrees to the cull going ahead.
Fiona Stewart, of the British Hedgehog Preservation Association, said there was no need to kill the animals.
She said: "The alternative is to relocate them from the island to the mainland."
Baroness Miller, Lib-Dem environment spokesperson, says the hedgehogs would be welcomed by gardeners in the south of England.
© Sunday Mail, 14 th July 2002
 |
 |
 |
| Return to index | Return to Exotic Scottish Animals | Return to Hedgehogs |