Urban Dweller

A long time ago, I lived in house over the road from a park. The park was mostly a sports field, with a wilder, more untamed bit down the back, which led down into a little gully. And sometimes, as well as kids playing weekend football, and people walking (usually enormous) dogs, there were these...

Picture: Hamilton Views

This one could even be the great-great-great-grandchild of one of the ones I used to watch in the park. And help escape when they fell into the swimming pool.

I still live close to a park, but this one is sadly hedgehog-free. Much as I can’t imagine ever living far from the centre of a city again, I do miss the hedgehogs. It would be nice if we had them in Australia (although the native animals are probably relieved we don’t seem to; still they’d have probably been less of a problem than rabbits. Or camels*). It would be even better if we had them in the park next door...

The San Diego Zoo actually has hedgehogs among its ark of animals. It seemed so very incongruous than in the midst of all these exotic creatures was a furry, prickly little thing that I used to have in my own back garden.

* Although both of those over-populated species are at least an option for eating, which would just be unthinkable with hedgehogs.