Hedgehog ‘fight’
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Last night we had two hedgehogs – one arrived for some food and water and the other one was in the ‘house’ Not long after the second hedgehog arrived the one in the ‘house’ came out and pushed the ‘interloper’ away. This carried on for almost half an hour with the ‘interloper’ curling up in a ball before eventually going away. Could this be the behaviour of one who has young in the ‘house’ and making sure they are safe?
Hi ElizR
This sounds like two males. It isn’t unusual for them to push each other around a bit. If one is a bit more submissive than the other it will roll up quite quickly, but if they are more evenly matched it can turn into a more ferocious fight and last a bit longer. But, even if one rolls up the agressor will often keep a look out and if the rolled up one unrolls he will biff him so he rolls up again. They don’t seem to need any particular reason for this other than that there is another male hedgehog in a male’s ‘space’. Hedgehogs don’t have territories, as such – they have ranges which overlap, so if your garden is where various ranges overlap, you could have several male hedgehogs visiting.
So, sorry that it doesn’t sound like a female defending her young, but fingers crossed you will get some hoglets in your garden before the season ends.
Good luck and happy hog watching!
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