Projects
Furzedown Hedgehog Highways
Hogwatch are collaborating with Furzedown Hedgehogs to monitor hedgehog activity and the impact of hedgehog highways in Tooting. Our research has identified the importance of garden habitats for hedgehog populations in urban areas, highlighting habitat fragmentation as a major threat to hedgehogs in London.
Hedgehog highway schemes aid in reducing this pressure by building a network of gardens, making green spaces more accessible for hedgehog populations. This study aims to explore the effectiveness of these schemes in improving habitat connectivity. Furzedown will act as an important case study to guide national-scale conservation action.
How can you help?
We are conducting a citizen science survey from Furzedown residents to gather information on the accessibility of gardens in the neighbourhood. We encourage every household in Furzedown to fill this in to get an accurate picture of current hedgehog accessibility in the area.
The questionnaire can be accessed here.
Fill out our questionnaire
Camera monitoring
Furzedown Hedgehogs began creating hedgehog highways in 2026, with the local community showing great initiative toward improving wildlife connectivity. London HogWatch wants to monitor this population to understand the impact on hedgehogs, allowing Furzedown to act as a nationally important case study for future conservation research.
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We are carrying out camera monitoring of gardens 3-4 weeks before and after a hedgehog highway is installed to assess how hedgehog abundance and wildlife activity changes.
Our wider survey of Furzedown is currently underway, involving 50 cameras deployed over a 4 week period beginning 2nd September 2026.
We plan to repeat this survey in 2 years time to assess how the Furzedown hedgehog highway scheme has affected wildlife and hedgehog activity over the wider area.
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If you live in Furzedown and are interested in installing a hedgehog highway, you can contact Furzedown Hedgehogs directly at furzedownhedgehogs@gmail.com