Slugs for Dinner?

It's a bit of a misconception that hedgehogs eat lots of slugs. They are often called 'the gardeners friend' for this very reason, but actually they don't eat slugs very often. Well would you want to eat something so slimy and rubbery?

Certainly I've never seen a hedgehog show any more interest in a slug than Big Bob does in this clip.



And judging from the slug invasion in my garden this year there wasn't a lot of munching going on apart from by the slugs themselves!

Information from the excellent Wildlifeonline website suggests only 27% of the hedgehogs studied diet was slugs. Caterpillars, beetles, earwigs and earthworms were much more popular.

So hedgehogs are still 'the gardeners friend' eating some garden pests even if they're not eating many slugs as they've long been famed for.