DANDARA East Scotland has announced it is launching ‘hedgehog highways’ at its Eskbank Gardens development near Dalkeith, in a move designed to protect the vulnerable creatures.
The housebuilder has installed small gaps under boundary fences, creating a highway that provides a safe and connected network of green space that hedgehogs can roam through.
Dandara added that with hedgehogs listed as vulnerable to extinction in the UK, the highways will help to increase habitats and provide refuge from pressures such as traffic and habitat loss.
Dandara has also made a £500 donation to Forth Hedgehog Hospital in Rosyth, which will be used to feed and look after injured hedgehogs.
Lisa Archibald, head of sales at Dandara Scotland, said, “Preserving and nurturing the wildlife and environment in which we build is vitally important to us and we were only too happy to install the highways after the issue was highlighted to us by Eskbank & Newbattle Community Council.”
Christina Harley of Eskbank & Newbattle Community Council commented, “In the last 20 years, hedgehog numbers have dropped by a third in urban areas and by half in rural areas. The loss of hedgehogs would be absolutely devastating to our environment, which is why it is so vital to have measures in place to protect them. We asked Dandara if they would help, and they were quick to respond.”
Nadia Al-Dujaili from the Forth Hedgehog Hospital added, “It is heart-warming that a housebuilder is doing something to help hedgehogs get from A to B as that can be a real issue, as they need to be able to roam so they can forage for food. We are very grateful for their kind donation to the hospital, it will make a huge difference to us.”
