---
title: "European Hedgehog (Erinaceus europaeus) | AnimalTracks.wiki"
description: "Around six thousand keratin spines, a back muscle that lets them all stand on end at once, and 1 to 2 km of travel a night."
image: "https://animaltracks.wiki/images/animals/european-hedgehog-1.webp"
published: "2026-09-01"
updated: "2026-09-14"
---
# European Hedgehog (*Erinaceus europaeus*)
> **Status**: Checked against 3 sources, listed under Sources below.
> **Tagline**: Around six thousand keratin spines, a back muscle that lets them all stand on end at once, and 1 to 2 km of travel a night.
> **Soundtrack Vibe**: Math Rock & Midwest Emo // Tiny Moving Parts, "Always Focused"
> **Soundtrack Links**: [Spotify](https://open.spotify.com/track/20zs5ECJ4on1YqXHiDZkTN) | [YouTube](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RcIuUFKjVaw)
> **Vibe Match**: Twinkling finger-tapped clean guitars and introspective nostalgic lyrics, for a hedgehog that curls into a ball as the muscles linked to each of its roughly 6,000 spines contract together, standing every one on end.
## Biological Superpowers & Stats
- **Taxonomy**: *Erinaceus europaeus*
- **Danger Level**: Low
- **Conservation Status**: Near Threatened ([IUCN Red List](https://doi.org/10.2305/iucn.uk.2024-2.rlts.t29650a213411773.en))
- **Superpower**: A sheet of muscle across the back, the panniculus carnosus, contracts to curl the body into a ball while the muscles linked to each spine contract too, leaving every spine standing on end.
- **Habitat**: Field edges, hedgerows, parks, cemeteries and gardens across western Europe, in areas that are not thickly wooded
- **Diet**: Ground-dwelling invertebrates, especially worms, beetles, slugs, caterpillars and earwigs, plus birds' eggs and carrion
- **Tags**: mammal, urban, insectivore, nocturnal
## Natural History & Behavior
## Rolling Into a Ball
Threaten a European hedgehog (*Erinaceus europaeus*) and it curls into a ball, protecting its face and vulnerable underbelly. A sheet of muscle called the panniculus carnosus covers its back, and contracting it pulls the hedgehog into that ball. At the same time, the muscles linked to each of its roughly 6,000 hollow keratin spines contract too, leaving every spine standing on end.
The ball can protect a hedgehog from most natural enemies. Badgers and foxes may be able to wedge their noses into the crease where the top and bottom of the spiny coat meet, and predators have been known to drop a balled-up hedgehog from a height to stun or injure it long enough to reach its exposed underbelly.
## On the Move at Night
Hedgehogs are 22 to 28 cm long, and adults weigh between 450 and 1,500 g. By day a hedgehog usually rests in a shallow nest of twigs, leaves and grass. It is mostly active at night or after heavy rain, and travels 1 to 2 kilometres a night. Although hedgehogs are usually thought of as slow, they can move at up to 40 metres a minute. When foraging they tend to follow linear features, meaning long, narrow strips of landscape. A hedgehog uses its keen sense of smell to find food: ground-dwelling invertebrates (animals without backbones), especially worms, beetles, slugs, caterpillars, millipedes and earwigs, plus birds' eggs and carrion (dead animals).
> **Frothy and Unexplained** Occasionally, some hedgehogs produce large amounts of frothy saliva and spread it over their spines. The behavior has a name, self-anointment, but its purpose is still a mystery.
## Hibernation, and Losing Ground
In Britain, hedgehogs hibernate between November and the end of March, when food is scarce, staying largely inactive to save energy. Stored fat keeps them insulated and gives them the energy to wake up when necessary, and hibernating hedgehogs take periodic breaks to forage.
Hedgehogs are found throughout western Europe, including mainland Britain and Ireland, and north as far as Scandinavia. They live especially along field edges and hedgerows, often in gardens and parks, and are absent from large conifer plantations, marshes and moorland. In Britain there is considerable evidence of a dramatic decline, with around a third of the population lost since the millennium. Worldwide, the species is now listed as Near Threatened on the IUCN Red List. Hedgehogs live about two years on average, and a small percentage reach five.
## Frequently Asked Questions
### Why do hedgehogs sometimes cover their spines in frothy spit?
Occasionally, some hedgehogs produce large amounts of frothy saliva and spread it over their spines. The behavior is called "self-anointment", and its purpose is still a mystery. *(Source: [People's Trust for Endangered Species, Facts and Figures]())*
### How many spines does a hedgehog have?
Around 6,000, closely packed and hollow. Each is creamy white, becoming brown at the base and pure white at the tip, with a dark chocolate-brown band just behind the point. *(Source: [People's Trust for Endangered Species, Facts and Figures]())*
### How does a hedgehog roll into a spiky ball?
A sheet of muscle called the panniculus carnosus covers a hedgehog's back. To protect itself, the hedgehog contracts that muscle to curl into a ball, while the muscles linked to each spine contract too, leaving every spine standing on end. It isn't foolproof: badgers and foxes may be able to wedge their noses into the crease where the top and bottom of the spiny coat meet, and predators have been known to drop a balled-up hedgehog from a height to stun or injure it long enough to reach its exposed underbelly. *(Source: [Animal Diversity Web, University of Michigan]())*
## Sources
1. [Hedgehog. People's Trust for Endangered Species, Facts and Figures.]()
2. [Erinaceus europaeus (western European hedgehog). Animal Diversity Web, University of Michigan.]()
3. [Gazzard & Rasmussen (2024). Erinaceus europaeus. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2024: e.T29650A213411773.]()
*Published September 1, 2026. Last updated September 14, 2026.*
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