Hedge your bets: keeping Halloween and Bonfire Night safe for our spiky friends
Published: 28/10/2024
Halloween and Bonfire Night are fun autumn celebrations, but they can unintentionally harm local wildlife, especially hedgehogs.
These friendly creatures are at risk of hibernating in wood piles intended for bonfires and even accidentally eating food they can’t digest, like pumpkin leftovers.
Here’s how we can all make a difference this season to keep hedgehogs safe.
Keep pumpkins out of the woods
After Halloween, you might see tips online suggesting that pumpkins can be left in the woods for the wildlife. Unfortunately, this isn’t helpful for nature. Leftover pumpkins can attract unwanted pests, creating imbalances in local ecosystems. Plus, eating pumpkins can cause digestive issues in hedgehogs and other animals.
Instead, here are some eco-friendly and fun ways to repurpose your pumpkins from Forestry England:
- Make a pumpkin face mask: Pumpkins are loaded with vitamins that nourish skin. Look up a DIY recipe for a pumpkin face mask and treat yourself to some autumn skincare.
- Create a bird feeder: Turn your pumpkin into a bird feeder by cutting it in half, threading wire through the top, and hanging it in your garden. Fill it with birdseed for an instant wildlife snack spot.
- Make a trick-or-treat bowl: Clean your pumpkin out, line it with a cloth, and fill it with treats for Halloween visitors.
- Pass along your pumpkin: Local zoos, farms, or community gardens may accept pumpkin donations. Many animals enjoy pumpkin snacks, and the leftovers can also make great compost.
Building a bonfire? #rememberhedgehogs
Hedgehogs are garden visitors often on the lookout for places to hibernate as the weather cools. A stack of wood or bonfire pile can seem like the perfect cozy spot for them. Sadly, each year many hedgehogs are harmed or killed due to hidden nests in bonfire stacks.
Our Sustainability team is asking everyone to always check their bonfires for hibernating hedgehogs before lighting. You can take the following steps to ensure that your bonfire is wildlife-friendly:
- Build the bonfire last-minute: assemble your bonfire only hours before you light it to prevent animals from moving in.
- Relocate stacked piles: if you have built your bonfire pile in advance, move it to a different spot before lighting to give any hidden animals a chance to escape.
- Check carefully: use a broomstick to lift the edges of your bonfire pile and listen for any movement. Hedgehogs often nest in the centre of the pile, so check there too.
- Light one side first: lighting from one side only provides an escape route for any unnoticed wildlife.
Hear from PhD student, Lauren Moore, as she talk through these top tips in the video below.
Join NTU’s hedgehog-friendly mission
NTU is committed to supporting hedgehog populations on campus, and you can help! Our Mansfield Campus is working towards achieving the Hedgehog Friendly Campus Silver Award this academic year, and we’d love for you to get involved.
Reach out to our Sustainability team at sustainability@ntu.ac.uk to find out how you can become a Mansfield Hedgehog Ambassador.
Let’s make this Halloween and Bonfire Night a season of kindness and safety for our spiky friends.