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 Wildville!
The Hedgehog
Hedgehog
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Mammalia
Order: Insectivora
Family: Erinacedae
Hedgehogs are well protected animals! Their backs are covered in spines, which are stiff and pointy hairs. Whenever its in trouble, a hedgehog curls up to protect its head and belly, and the spines stick out. Unlike porcupines, hedgehogs do not have poison in their spines. Hedgehogs grow from 5.5 to 12 inches and weigh an average of 1.5 pounds. They live in many places in the world, including Europe, Asia, Africa and India.
Hedgehogs eat many different things: insects, snails, slugs, frogs, toads, lizards, bird eggs, fruit and even snakes! They are nocturnal animals, which means they sleep during the day and wake up at night. They sometimes live in burrows, either digging a burrow themselves or using an abandoned one. During the winter, they hibernate, or sleep. They have bad eyesight, but have a good ears and sharp noses.
Hedgehogs have a strange habit when they find an unfamiliar smell. They will bite and lick the source of the new smell until they make a frothy drool, which they rub on their spines. Scientists guess that hedgehogs do this to disguise their scent from predators like hawks, but they do not know for sure.
Hedgehogs helped to create Groundhog Day. The ancient Romans believed that on February 2, hedgehogs would come out from their burrows. If the hedgehogs saw their shadows, they would return to their dens because winter would last another six weeks. In the United States, we keep the same tradition using a groundhog instead of a hedgehog.
Ashley Genova is a contributing writer from Fayetteville, NC. Sources: Britannica Encyclopedia Online; Wikipedia, Hedgehog.
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