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We take your questions about life, Earth and the universe to researchers hunting for answers at the frontiers of knowledge.

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CrowdScience: How Do You Stop a Hedgehog Invasion?

How Do You Stop a Hedgehog Invasion?

BBC World Service - CrowdScience, How Do You Stop a Hedgehog Invasion?

Getting rid of an invader that people think is cute poses all sorts of prickly problems…

In the UK people love hedgehogs. But in Scotland’s Outer Hebrides they’re invasive and causing declines in globally important bird species. So how was this prickly problem solved?

Hedgehogs are the UK’s favourite British mammal. They have cute furry faces, a snuffly nose and the ability to gobble up garden slugs. What’s not to like? Answer: quite a lot if you live in the Outer Hebrides. Hedgehogs were introduced to South Uist in the 1970s as garden pest controllers, but are now serious pests in their own right – munching their way through the eggs and chicks of globally important wading bird populations. This emblem of cuteness is really a killer. So what’s to be done?  

That’s the quandary facing this week’s CrowdScience thanks to a question from Juan Carlos in Cuba. He wants to know how different parts of the world are dealing with invasive species – one of the biggest threats to global biodiversity. Presenter Anand Jagatia heads to the Uists to hear how having an invader that’s loved by millions can cause a whole host of problems. He also discovers how various warring parties eventually came together to solve this very prickly problem.  

Also in the programme, Anand travels to South Africa to find out how researchers are coping with invasive trees by introducing another non-native species. While in the Caribbean, we hear how people are dealing with invasive fish by eating them.  

Presenter: Anand Jagatia 
Producer: Anna Lacey

(Photo: A European hedgehog. Credit: Getty Images)

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