Investigating the Role of the Eurasian Badger (Meles meles) in the Nationwide Distribution of the Western European Hedgehog (Erinaceus europaeus) in England

Abstract

Biodiversity is declining globally, which calls for effective conservation measures. It is, therefore, important to investigate the drivers behind species presence at large spatial scales. The Western European hedgehog (Erinaceus europaeus) is one of the species facing declines in parts of its range. Yet, drivers of Western European hedgehog distribution at large spatial scales remain largely unknown. At local scales, the Eurasian badger (Meles meles), an intraguild predator of the Western European hedgehog, can affect both the abundance and the distribution of the latter. However, the Western European hedgehog and the Eurasian badger have shown to be able to co-exist at a landscape scale. We investigated whether the Eurasian badger may play a role in the likelihood of the presence of the Western European hedgehog throughout England by using two nationwide citizen science surveys. Although habitat-related factors explained more variation in the likelihood of Western European hedgehog presence, our results suggest that Eurasian badger presence negatively impacts the likelihood of Western European hedgehog presence. Intraguild predation may, therefore, be influencing the nationwide distribution of hedgehogs in England, and further research is needed about how changes in badger densities and intensifying agricultural practices that remove shelters like hedgerows may influence hedgehog presence.

Keywords: citizen science; conservation; displacement; predator-prey interaction; spatial use.

Figure 1

Proportion of positive hedgehog sightings according to the ‘HogWatch’ survey of 2005–2006.

Figure 2

Proportion of positive badger sightings according to the ‘Living with Mammals’ survey of 2003–2006.

Figure 3

The exponential semivariogram model with 8 lags used for kriging the hedgehog data.

Figure 4

The Gaussian semivariogram model with 5 lags used for kriging the badger data.

Figure 5

Maps showing an index (low: 0, high: 1) of the likelihood of the presence of (a) hedgehogs and (b) badgers throughout England.

Figure 6

Results of hierarchical partitioning showing the individual contribution of each variable towards the total explained variation (R²) of the model (R² = 0.258).