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Islanders planning bonfire celebrations this week are being urged to check their firewood piles for hedgehogs that may be sheltering within.
Gill Morgan from the Jersey Hedgehog Preservation Group has issued guidance for those hosting small gatherings and commercial organisers of larger bonfire displays.
She encouraged people to carefully dismantle and reposition firewood before lighting it to ensure no hedgehogs have settled in the piles, which the animals often use as winter homes as they prepare for hibernation.
Pictured: Hedgehogs are prone to getting injured in bonfires. (Jersey Hedgehog Preservation Group)
Hedgehogs, unlike other mammals, tend to curl up in a ball rather than run away at the first sign of danger.
This situation puts them at risk of being hurt if they are accidentally trapped in a burning woodpile.
Gill said: “If you are setting a bonfire this 5 November, please check carefully before lighting it.
“If possible, build the bonfire on the day you are setting it alight so that you know no hedgehog has taken up residence.”
She added: “They have no real predators in Jersey except for us humans.
“With numbers in decline, we really need to be looking out for them.”
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