Accessibility Homepage Skip navigation Sitemap

Atelerix

A young four-toed hedgehog.
Image by Pueri Michał Klimont via Wikimedia Commons.

The Atelerix genus contains four species of hedgehog. They live in Africa and Europe.

The Atelerix species live across a wide range, and are happy living in grassland and savannah. They are often sold internationally as pets, although none of them are native to Britain.

Species:

Scientific name Common name Found in
A. albiventris White-bellied hedgehog or four-toed hedgehog Central and Eastern Africa
A. algirus Algerian hedgehog Algeria, Morocco, Tunisia, northern Libya, southern France, Spain, Canary Islands, Balearic Islands, Malta and Djerba
A. frontalis South African hedgehog South Africa, Zimbabwe, Zambia, Namibia, Botswana
A. sclateri Somalian hedgehog Somalia


Atelerix characteristics:

These hedgehogs have a central parting of the spines at the crown of the head, and short ears. They have no big toe on the back foot. In addition, they have a whitish band across the forehead.


Hedgehog