Hedgehogs are part of the picture in gardens and parks. Normally, the echinoderms lead a hidden life. Her diet seems to be a secret. Many nature lovers do not know what hedgehogs like to eat because of the numerous pieces of advice.

Hedgehogs eat fruit and plants mainly for water

Table of Contents

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  1. the essentials in brief
  2. What do hedgehogs eat?
  3. feed hedgehogs?
  4. Hedgehog food for emergencies
  5. frequently asked Questions

    6. the essentials in brief

    • Hedgehogs love to eat insects. Slugs, toads and carrion are also part of the food chain. The range of prey varies slightly throughout the year.
    • Hedgehogs may only be fed in exceptional situations. Feeding in the garden has more disadvantages than positive effects.
    • Sick, weak and underweight animals need help. They can eat cat food, but do not tolerate milk.

    What do hedgehogs eat in nature?

    The natural diet is influenced by the season and weather conditions. Their digestive system is specialized for certain foods, with the animals occasionally appearing as omnivores. Don't let that confuse you when you need to feed a hedgehog in need.

    Diet in the wild

    In nature, hedgehogs mainly eat snails, worms and other small insects

    Hedgehogs have a very simple digestive tract consisting of one tube. Their intestines are very short compared to their body length. An appendix is missing. The digestive system severely restricts the diet, although hedgehogs occasionally turn out to be omnivores. Mainly the echinoderms are insectivores. As nocturnal creatures, they search for invertebrates in nature under cover of darkness.

    main food:

    • insects: ground beetles, centipedes and spiders
    • larvae: butterfly caterpillars
    • mollusks: Annealed worms and snails

    Occasionally, the prickly quadrupeds eat carrion, or they devour vertebrates. It happens that hedgehogs hunt frogs or mice. To a lesser extent, plant food sources are used in the garden to meet water needs or when invertebrate supply is low. This includes fallen fruit or roots. A purely vegetarian diet is not suitable for the animals. Your gastrointestinal tract cannot break down the plant-based food, so most of it is excreted undigested.

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    range of foods over the course of the year

    Hedgehogs are considered adaptable. The clever echinoderms know about the food supply that is available to them in the different seasons. They rummage through different sources where their main food is found. Because of their fondness for sweets, hedgehogs are occasionally observed eating berries and fallen fruit.

    What do hedgehogs eat? influencing factors
    in the spring earthworms, centipedes and snails; occasional bird eggs Rainfall drives insects and worms to the surface
    in summer Beetles and slugs when available Drought favors warmth-loving beetle species
    in the autumn Apple, fruit and root leftovers Insects in rotting plant parts and overripe fallen fruit
    in the winter no food intake Ground frost and snow limit insect diversity

    digression

    Is there really a lack of food in the dry summer months?

    The Zurich Hedgehog Center has dealt with this question, because it is often recommended to feed hedgehogs during hot periods. Earthworms make up a small part of a hedgehog's diet. When there is a drought, they retreat to deeper soil layers and are therefore no longer available as a food source.

    The situation is different with the insects, which make up the main part of the hedgehog food. Warm weather has a positive impact on the development times of many thermophilic species. As a result, certain beetles develop faster in the hot summer months and can therefore reproduce more frequently. Multiple generations occur in a shorter period of time, which diversifies the hedgehog's food supply.

    Can I feed hedgehogs?

    Wild hedgehogs should not be fed

    In general, wild animals should not be fed. The habituation effect is too great, so the animals quickly get used to the new and easily accessible food source. Even if young hedgehogs beg you with their heart-rending eyes, do not feed them. They need the opportunity to capture their own food. In these three exceptions, it makes sense and is necessary to support hedgehogs by feeding them:

    • winter foundlings: Hedgehogs awoke from hibernation too early and cannot find food in the frozen ground
    • weaklings: Young hedgehogs weigh less than 500 grams before the onset of winter
    • illness: Animals are emaciated and suffering from a disease

    Reasons against feeding

    In the course of the year, native hedgehogs go through a rhythm that they have to adhere to in order to survive. If the animals are fed across the board in autumn and winter, their metabolism remains active. The risk is higher that they will not hibernate and will be dependent on solid food sources until next spring.

    In general, hedgehogs should not be fed as they can find enough food in nature. A bowl of water is important in the hot summer months.

    Hedgehog in need: What can a hedgehog eat?

    Cat food is not good food for hedgehogs

    No substitute food comes close to the quality of the natural hedgehog food. If hedgehogs cannot find enough food between spring and autumn, you can think about emergency feeding. Remember that a feeding station must be kept clean. Dirty bowls have a higher risk of pathogens multiplying.

    tips

    Cat food is an alternative for exceptional cases. It is not an ideal diet because it is not adapted to the needs of hedgehogs as the main insect eaters, but to the needs of cats.

    What do little hedgehogs eat?

    A baby hedgehog that weighs less than 120 grams is not yet used to solid food. Such foundlings are given puppy milk substitutes in breeding stations. In any case, feeding with cow's milk should be avoided. The lactose it contains cannot be broken down in the intestines, so the little hedgehog gets diarrhea. In the worst case, he dies as a result of malnutrition.

    What can a hedgehog not eat?

    Numerous hedgehog guides report that homemade muesli is a varied alternative food. You should refrain from such experiments. The simply structured gastrointestinal tract is not able to utilize the food. Fructose leads to the formation of tartar and tooth decay. As a result, old animals often suffer from tooth loss and die of starvation.

    • What hedgehogs are not allowed to eat: milk, cheese, quark, yoghurt and hazelnut biscuits
    • What they can't use: Raisins, apples, bananas and avocados
    • What echinoderms don't eat: carrots, onions, lettuce, potatoes, leaves

    What do hedgehogs drink?

    Hedgehogs should never drink milk!

    In nature, the animals satisfy their need for liquids by absorbing water from puddles, streams and ponds. Hedgehogs are lactose intolerant and cannot break down milk sugar.

    tips

    Weakened hedgehogs can be refreshed with a mixture of lukewarm chamomile tea and some honey. However, the sweetener is not suitable for permanent feeding.

    frequently asked Questions

    Are hedgehogs good against slugs in the garden?

    Snails are on the menu of hedgehogs. These are consumed in spring and summer when the moist garden beds offer optimal living conditions for the mollusks. However, hedgehogs are no guarantee for a snail-free garden. Only ten percent of the insectivore's entire food spectrum is filled by snails. Since it eats snail clutches, it can somewhat curb the spread of crop pests.

    What snails do hedgehogs eat?

    Snails are considered emergency food for echinoderms. They play a lesser role in the food spectrum. Which species are captured depends on the offer. During the spring, hedgehogs eat snails that frolic among the damp grasses. In the later course of the year, slugs are not spurned either.

    Types of snails in the hedgehog diet:

    • Tiger Slug (Limax maximus)
    • Garden slug (Arion hortensis)
    • Ground slug (Tandonia budapestensis)

    Slugs are avoided as far as possible. In Germany, hedgehogs are among the mammals that eat the Spanish slug (also known as the nasturtium). Before it becomes edible, the animal rolls its prey on the ground. The process, which lasts up to half an hour, serves to remove the bitter-tasting mucus.

    How can I help hedgehogs properly?

    Heaps of leaves are the ideal wintering place for hedgehogs

    A natural garden design is much more important than supplementary feeding, so that the hedgehog finds a natural retreat with plentiful food sources. Be sure to plant native shrubs. Dead wood provides shelter in undisturbed areas of the garden and offers hibernation quarters. Leave piles of leaves and grass to grow until spring. Old fruit trees that no longer bear well are considered biodiversity hotspots. They provide a habitat for heat-loving insects.

    Am I allowed to keep hedgehogs in captivity?

    The echinoderms are among the specially protected animal species and must not be captured and kept in the home without reason. In exceptional cases, temporary accommodation is allowed if the animals are sick or weak and would not survive the winter without human help.

    Greens against a stance:

    • Temperatures that are too warm allow the metabolism to run at full speed
    • Energy reserves are used up too quickly
    • releasing too late carries the risk that territories are already occupied
    • wintered hedgehog hatchlings have no experience in capturing live prey

    Anyone who takes in a young animal for the winter runs a great risk that it will have poorer chances of surviving in the coming year. It may be that the hedgehog will need human help again next winter. In nature, the cold season acts as a selection for well-adapted and weak hedgehogs.

    What do hedgehogs love to eat?

    Hedgehogs particularly like to stay in rotten deadwood piles to look for their main food there. They like to eat insects that cavort under the bark and on the soil surface. These supply the echinoderms with proteins, trace elements and vitamins. Since their intestines have already digested the food after 20 hours, a hedgehog has to fill its stomach at least twice a night.

Category:

Animals in the garden