Hedgehogs in the UK are in serious trouble. Repeated studies have shown that the nation’s favourite animal is being wiped out. But there is something we can do to save them.

I’m an ecologist and author and I’ve been studying hedgehogs for over 30 years. I know that a key cause of them dying out is that our landscapes are being fenced off into ever smaller fragments. We need to make sure new housing developments include ‘hedgehog highways’ - a 13 cm hole in the bottom of a fence that allows hedgehogs to move freely between gardens to find food and find a mate.

This simple move would have a big impact on the UK’s hedgehogs - and it’s cheap and easy for developers to carry out.

So I’m calling upon government to ensure every new housing development builds in these holes for hedgehog highways. This will allow gardens to be connected, creating the pathways they need to survive.

We can’t sit back and let hedgehog numbers keep plummeting. It’s estimated that numbers are already down 95% since the 1950s. We have to act now.

Please sign here to call on the Ministry of Housing and Planning to make hedgehog highways a legal requirement of new builds.