The hedgehog in your garden

Soon after waking from hibernation in spring, male hedgehogs begin looking for partners and mating occurs until September. Baby hedgehogs are born after a gestation period of about 35 days in a nest lined with grass and leaves between the months of July and October. Mothers take sole responsibility for the upbringing of the young. Generally there are 3-6 babies in a nest, born blind, deaf and with no spines. The first white spines are enveloped in a film over the skin and erupt within the first 24hrs of life. After about 3 days the brown spines begin to grow. The mother hedgehog suckles her young for approximately 3-4 weeks after which they also leave the nest to go on the nightly foraging trips. After about 6 weeks the babies weigh +/- 300gr and are now self sufficient and able to survive in the world alone.
Hibernation
Why? Hedgehogs, unlike most mammals, lack the insulation of a warm fur coat. This coupled with the fact that the hedgehogs’ diet of worms, insects, slugs and snails disappears during winter is the primary cause for hibernation. Without the energy derived from their diet they are unable to function normally.
When? This is dependent on the weather; low temperatures in November and December are usually the trigger for adult hedgehogs to begin the long hibernation. In young hedgehogs this can occur as late as January.
How? Their body temperature drops from 35C to about 4C; breathing slows down to once in two minutes and the heartbeat reduces from 190 beats per minute to 14 beats. During hibernation reduced bodily functions rely on special brown fat reserves built up during autumn.
Where? As the temperatures fall the hedgehog begins looking around for a suitable spot to make a winter nest. Favourite spots are under hedges and within tree roots, in compost heaps, under wood piles and under sheds, in fact anywhere warm and dry. The often untidy looking nest is woven from leaves and other plant matter.