For a couple of months every spring/summer the People’s Trust for Endangered Species runs a survey Living with Mammals which asks us to record the mammals we see in our back gardens. I’ve been taking part in this for some years and just before Christmas I received the 2016 Living with Mammals survey update. For those of you who are more ecologically minded here are a few snippets from this brief report.

The value of biodiversity and the wildlife in our towns and cities is recognised today more than ever.
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A hundred years ago, red squirrel numbers were already declining, while their grey counterparts, introduced in the last quarter of the 19th century, hadn’t yet become established.
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Since their introduction from North America, grey squirrels have replaced red squirrels across much of their range. Both red and grey squirrels eat acorns, but greys are better able to digest them and, in deciduous woodland, this gives them a competitive advantage.
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Hedgehogs [have] shown a decline of a quarter in the population since the survey began in 2003.
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Ensuring gardens are accessible, forming a network of ‘hedgehog highways’; growing plants that benefit insects; providing nesting sites, such as a woodpile or access under a shed; and removing hazards, such as netting, are easy to do and might be turning a corner for hedgehog conservation.

Photograph © Sam Hobson
The proportion of sites recording foxes each year has fallen slightly and worries that fox numbers are a worsening problem are misplaced. Foxes have few specific habitat requirements; they are adaptable and savvy enough to make use of the food and shelter provided by the built environment and provide a service clearing up much of waste we leave around … foxes, like all wildlife, want a quiet life and while they can be bold, they are rarely unruly.

This reinforces the point that gardens, especially suburban gardens, are an invaluable haven for wildlife and the ever encroaching fashion for paving, decking and manicured grass does the wildlife few favours. [One exception: decking provides a super condominium for rats and mice.]