NETWORK Rail has completed work on the creation of a ‘hedgehog highway’ in the southside of Glasgow.
Hedgehog-sized holes have been included in one mile of timber fencing renewal at Muirend, which the rail organisation said will allow the little creatures to move freely in and around railway property.
It comes following a successful recent trial at Lanark station, where hedgehog holes were added to a boundary fence. The fencing renewal at Muirend is the first time that the approach has been rolled-out as standard on a large scale.
Network Rail said that railway embankments are a hedgehog ‘haven’, with a rich mix of trees and vegetation which provide a safe and food-rich area for the animal. The hedgehog sized holes have been made at regular intervals to allow the animals to move safely between their foraging habitats and their nests.
Sam McIlvaney, scheme project manager, said, “Muirend is the first site where we will be adding hedgehog holes as standard to our timber fencing renewals.
“We have already used this approach on some back-garden fencing work, but this is the first large-scale fencing renewal where we have been able to add the hedgehog holes.
“We are committed to minimising our ecological and environmental impacts and something as simple as adding holes to fences will make a positive contribution to protecting these little creatures for future generations to love.”
